Sanctuary
by Hecate28
Summary: Sequel to Stray. For the first time in her life Erin finally felt she was home, but the past has a nasty habit of creeping up on you when you least expect it. (Part of the Erin Series)
1. When fate comes a knocking

**Disclaimer: All characters belong to BBC, except Erin who is my own creation**

Leo looked up from the report he was writing on his laptop and couldn't help but smile. Erin was sprawled out on the floor in front of him completely absorbed in a paperback, her face the picture of concentration as she silently mouthed the words she was reading.

"Are you comfortable down there?" he said drawing the girl out of the little world she was in

Erin nodded and turned her concentration back to the book but Leo noticed the small smile that played across her lips.

It had been nearly been a whole year since Erin had first fallen into Leo's life and he was amazed at how she'd developed and how mature she'd been facing her past. Erin had settled well at school and aside from a few hiccups she was dealing with things well

"What are you doing?" Erin said getting up and sitting herself down next to Leo

"Writing up a report" he told her as she settled down

"What about?" Erin asked, her curiosity getting the better of her

Leo paused; he had always been reluctant in revealing too much to Erin as he knew how macabre his work could be. Erin had been through a lot despite her young years and Leo was very aware of how delicate she was despite the tough exterior she put on.

"It's too gory for nice young ladies like you" he said closing the laptop down

"Please…" Erin protested

"When you're older" he told her standing up and pulling her up with him

"That's what you said last time" Erin mumbled

"You're far too curious for your own good" he chuckled

"Einstein said we should never stop questioning" she told him in reply and he smiled at her

"Do you know how Einstein got so smart?" Erin shook her head "He always did his homework" Leo motioned to the textbooks and folders Erin had abandoned on the floor

"I can't do it" she whined

"No such word as 'can't" he teased

"Fine" Erin huffed "I _cannot_ do it"

Leo shook his head at her but Erin had caught the smile on his face and she knew he wasn't really cross with her

"Let me put this away and then I'll come and help you" he said moving out of the room, laptop and case file in hand.

As Leo stored his work belongings away somewhere Erin was not easily able to get to, he heard the doorbell ring

"Erin, can you get that?" he called to her and moments later he heard her shuffle off towards the door.

He listened intently as he heard the front door click open and was alarmed when he heard a cry of shock from Erin. Leaving his work in a pile he made his way to the door where Erin stood rooted to the spot as she peered out into the darkness.

"Erin?" he gently tapped her on the shoulder and she shrank back behind him gripping onto his shirt tightly like a small child would

"Leo…" she mumbled and he could hear the fear building in her voice

He put a comforting hand on her back as he moved forwards to see who was at the door, with Erin clinging onto him.

"Hello?" he said as he saw a female figure standing outside

Bathed in the light coming from the house, Leo could just make out the figure was a middle-aged woman; she had bright red lipstick on and spots of blusher which did nothing to hide her haggard appearance. Her quite clearly dyed blonde hair was lank and un-brushed and Leo could smell the strong scent of cigarettes

"I want to talk to Erin" the woman spoke in a harsh tone and Leo felt Erin's grip tighten

"And who might you be?" he asked keeping his voice calm, so as not to alarm Erin any more than was necessary

"Nora Rhys" the woman croaked "I'm her Godmother"

**Author's note: Short chapter to start off with but they will be longer when I get going. I just thought this was a good place to stop. What do you think, worth continuing? **


	2. A resurgence of forgotten feelings

'_You'd better come in…'_

Those were the words that Erin never thought she would hear Leo say and now she was sitting in the living room still clinging on tightly to Leo unable to lift her gaze to the woman sitting in front of her

"So you're Erin's godmother" she heard Leo say

"She never mentioned me then" came the harsh reply

"Well…no not exactly" Leo stumbled over his words "Things have been quite chaotic with Erin moving from place to place, I'm sure it just got lost in translation"

"I highly doubt it" Nora snorted "Useless like your father"

Leo flinched at the woman's harsh words but Erin said nothing and just tightened her grip on him so now she was clinging to Leo like a limpet

"Erin's my daughter and I would appreciate you showing her a decent level of respect"

"Your daughter?" Nora said, her voice registering a tone of surprise "And there's me thinking they just made a typing error"

Leo shot a puzzled look to Erin who was unable to return any expression of emotion. Nora fumbled around in her pocket and pulled out a crumpled up newspaper article and handing it to Leo.

The older man took it from her and smoothed it out as he quickly scanned over the text

'_Erin Dalton, 17 from Park Lane School was the winner of the Eden Art Prize….'_

Leo felt a swell of pride in his heart as he reminisced that only a few weeks ago Erin had won a local community art competition although she had been exceptionally modest and humble about it

"You always did have a nasty habit of landing on your feet" Nora sneered as Erin finally plucked up the courage to look at her godmother

"I think Erin deserves some happiness after what she's been through" Leo said curtly

"After what she put her poor mother through you mean!" Nora snapped

Leo was about to reply when Erin put a hand on his arm to stop him, he gently took her hand and wrapped it in his as he cleared his throat

"Well it's getting late and Erin has school tomorrow…" Leo began

Nora interrupted him "Don't you want to know how I found out where she lived?"

"I think we've heard enough for tonight…"

"People know about you Erin" Nora said with gleaming eyes "Your mother's friends are all around. Never forget that…"

"That's enough!" Leo said getting to his feet suddenly in a very imposing manner "I think you should leave"

Erin had never been so glad to hear Leo speak in her life and suddenly she felt a swell of hope that this woman would leave her home and never come back

"I want to see Erin" Nora said "I'm her godmother and I want access"

"I think enough has been said for tonight" Leo said moving towards the door "We can talk about this later at a reasonable hour"

"I'll be back, don't you worry" Nora said storming out of the house and slamming the door behind her.

Leo turned back to Erin who was huddled up on the sofa

"It's okay" he said to her

"No it's not" Erin's head snapped up and Leo could see tears forming in her eyes

"She's gone now" Leo said trying to calm an increasing erratic Erin down

"You think this will be an end to it?" she said standing up and brushing past him "It's far from over"

And with that Erin ran out of the room and hurtled towards her bedroom before Leo could say anything more to her

* * *

Erin's body convulsed as each sob racked through her small frame. Deep down she had know that the pleasant times she had spent with Harry, Nikki and Leo were too good to last. She was so angry at herself for being lulled into a false sense of security; of course her mother was not going to let her off that easily. She had always known that she was never really going to shake off her past; her mother was controlling her even six feet under. Suddenly she heard a knock at the door and she quickly leapt under her duvet and pretended to be asleep.

The door gently clicked open and Erin knew that Leo was standing there analysing whether on not she was in the mood to talk

"I know you're not asleep…" Leo began "…And that's fine of you don't want to talk to me tonight. I just want to let you know that I won't ever let Nora or anyone else harm you Erin. The first day I met you I promised I would help you and I still keep to that promise. If you don't want to see her again then you don't have too. No one can hurt you anymore Erin or make you do anything you don't want to do"

Erin bit her lip to try and stop letting out a sob. She kept quiet for a few minutes longer before she heard Leo gently sigh and leave the room

Pushing the duvet away from her, she sat up in bed, feeling the fresh air strike her face, shakily climbing out of bed and moving towards the window she peered out into the gloomy night. By the dim illumination of a nearby streetlamp she could just about make a figure standing on the other side of the road peering up at her window, despite the lack of light Erin knew who it was. Trying to fight the rising nausea in her stomach she roughly pulled the curtains across her window and flung herself into bed wrapping the duvet tightly around her

* * *

Leo sat wide awake in bed listening for any tiny noise that Erin made. He was worried about her, he had never seen Erin reaction so strongly to anyone before and he would never forget that look of sheer terror in Erin's eyes when she opened the front door to Nora.

Suddenly Leo heard a short, sharp scream coming from Erin's room. He leapt out of bed and sprinted towards the young girl's room. Flinging the door open he was met by a terrified looking Erin who was curled up in a tight ball on her bed. Flicking on her light her knew something wasn't right; Erin had a sheen of sweat across her forehead and her dark hair was plastered to it. Her bed sheets were soaking and the pungent smell of urine lay heavy in the air.

"Erin…" Leo said moving slowly towards the girl so not to scare her anymore than she was already

Erin looked up at him still quivering violently. Her breathing was ragged and her face was pale and drawn. Her body convulsed and Erin gagged which was soon followed by a retching as she consequently vomited all over the bed. For the first time in nearly a year, Erin's nightmares had returned.


	3. A Waking Nightmare

After Leo had thrown the sopping bedclothes and vomit stained pyjamas belonging to Erin in the washing machine, he made his way back upstairs and into his bedroom. Erin was curled up in his bed still shivering with a mixture of fear and coldness, Leo had settled her there after she'd finally stopped screaming so she could keep warm whilst he sorted her room out.

"How do you feel now?" he said perching on the end of the bed

"Queasy" Erin said in a husky voice which was hoarse from all the screaming she'd been doing

Leo frowned as Erin sat up in bed; she was wearing one of Leo's old sweatshirts and it was much too big for her, sometimes he'd forget how small she was for her age

"You still look a bit peaky" he said taking in her ashen appearance highlighted by the dark bags under her eyes

"It hurts" Erin said softly

"Where?" she pointed to her heart "Oh Erin…" Leo sighed "…She can't hurt you; I won't let her come near you"

"I don't feel so good" Erin said as her body convulsed and she threw up again in the small bowl Leo had provided for her in case of any more vomiting

"I don't think you should go into school today" Leo said preparing himself for an argument from Erin

"Okay…" she shrugged and rolled over in bed

Leo was concerned at Erin's submissive tone but didn't comment any further as the young girl looked far to exhausted to be questioned anymore

"I'll phone the school and then I'll call Harry to let him know I wont be in" Leo said standing up

"No!" Erin said sitting up suddenly "Please can I come into work with you"

"You need to rest" Leo said softly

"She knows where I am here" Erin said, her eyes growing wide with fear

Leo nodded his head in understanding "Alright, but as soon as you even feel slightly ill again, we're coming straight home and you'll be confined to your bed for the rest of the day"

Erin nodded as she shakily made her way out of bed and towards the bathroom so she could wash off the sweat and vomit that reminded her of last nights terror

* * *

As soon as Harry got into work that morning, he sensed something was wrong. He made his way to Leo's office trying to ignore the eerie hush in the air, Harry gently knocked and pushed the door open and was shocked to find what he did. Erin was curled up on one of the chairs in Leo's office, her head tucked firmly in her knees and she was rocking gently back and forth. Harry could see that Leo was trying to type up a report but his concentration seemed fixed on the young girl in the corner

"Hello Erin" Harry said as he stepped into the office

Erin looked up at Harry and he started at her ashen appearance, puffy red eyes and tear stained face

"Are you not going into school today?" he asked and Erin shook her head

"Don't feel well" she mumbled

"Harry can I have a word outside?" Leo said standing up

Harry nodded "I hope you feel better soon" he called to Erin as he followed Leo outside

"Is she okay?" Harry asked as Leo closed the door

"She had an awful nightmare last night; I've been up since the early hours of the morning trying to calm her down"

"I thought the nightmares had passed, what brought it on?" Harry frowned, puzzled by Erin's sudden deterioration

Leo sighed "Her godmother turned up last night?"

Harry's face changed to an expression of shock "I didn't think she had any family"

"Neither did I" Leo admitted "But it seems a good thing that this one stayed away for as long as she did"

"Is she like Erin's mother?" Harry asked and Leo nodded "Just what Erin needs, a reminder of the past" the young man said sarcastically

"She's a complete mess today" Leo frowned "I don't know where her head is at, I don't even think she knows to be honest"

"Probably best to keep her off school then" Harry nodded "Did she protest at all?"

"That's the strange thing" the older man commented "he couldn't have been more accepting about it. I've never known Erin to be so placid"

Harry gazed at Erin through the glass walls of Leo's office; this newcomer had seriously knocked Erin for six and sent the young girl's world, the only sanctuary she knew, crashing down around her.

* * *

A few hours later, Erin finally uncurled herself from her defensive stance. Leo had been called to a crime scene a few hours ago and now Erin was starting to feel the pit of loneliness eating away at her. Still feeling very shaken she made her way out of Leo's office and into the main lab in search of some company. She passed some lab technician who smiled warmly at her, now very used to the young girl's presence in the lab.

Erin turned a corner and finally saw Harry sitting there at his desk watching her every move like he had already anticipated her joining him. He pulled out a stool which Erin sat down tentatively on. The two sat in companionable silence for a good ten minutes before Erin finally broke the silence

"I want Leo…" she said and Harry could hear the pain in her voice

"He'll be back soon" he reassured her "In the meantime will I do?"

Erin shrugged "I guess so…"

Harry chuckled at her comment "Do you feel any better?" he asked noticing Erin had gotten some of her colour back

She nodded "I don't feel sick anymore"

"Good" Harry smiled as he pushed a sandwich carton towards her "Then you'll want something to eat"

Erin eyes the sandwich cautiously but Harry was persistent in his task

"It's your favourite" he tempted "cheese and pickle…"

Erin wrinkled her nose but stretched forward and took the sandwich out of its carton. She took a very small bite and started to chew it with Harry watching her every move. When he was satisfied she had eaten enough he gave her an encouraging smile and pushed on to the more pressing issue

"Leo told me Nora came round last night" Harry stated

Erin froze as she gulped down the last piece of sandwich "Oh…" was all she said

"Erin, you know there's nothing to be scared of" Harry soothed

"So everyone keeps telling me" Erin let out a small laugh which sounded more like a sob

"She can't get anywhere near you without your permission. You have that right"

"You have no idea what she's like" Erin said warily "Like any law or regulation will stop her"

"Tell me what she's like then" Harry pressed

"Evil" Erin spat "Just like her"

Harry nodded sadly already understanding 'her' to be Erin's mother as the young girl could never quite bring herself round to openly talk about her absent parents

"Did she hurt you Erin?" Harry asked cautiously

Erin shook her head "But she didn't do anything to stop it. She just stood there and watched"

Harry frowned as he heard Erin say this and he looked up to see Leo walking into the lab

"You're looking better" Leo smiled at Erin who could only echo the expression weakly

"Erin was just telling me about Nora" Harry said and Leo nodded, understanding after hearing the last parts of their conversation

"Listen to me" Leo said crouching before her "I've been checking up on the legal side of things and I promise you that she can only have contact with you if you want it"

Erin nodded slowly but the two men could see the doubt still lingering in her eyes

"I think we should get you home" Leo said standing up and putting his arm around his daughter

"I can cope here fine" Harry nodded and Leo smiled gratefully

"Bed rest for you, young lady" the older man told Erin gently who could only nod as she was led out of the lab

* * *

Erin stared straight ahead out of the car window as Leo bustled about putting his belongings in the car

"I was thinking I might cook your favourite tonight" Leo told her

"You don't have to do that" Erin said mechanically

"I want to" Leo said climbing into the car beside her and giving her a warm smile as he started up the car

Erin shrugged and turned her gaze towards the window. As they pulled out of the car park, she nearly felt her heart stop as she took in the surroundings. There standing just outside the security barrier to the lab, half hidden in the foliage was Nora. The woman's cold eyes were fixed to a point and Erin knew that she was the target.


	4. Confrontation

When they got home Leo sent Erin upstairs straight away to get into bed. He knew she had only gotten a few hours sleep the previous night and was bordering on exhaustion. Erin pulled back her now clean duvet and settled down in her bed unable to forget the sinking feeling inside of her, she hadn't told Leo about seeing Nora at the lab because she didn't want to worry him and anyway he had promised her that she would be safe.

She heard a knock on the door and looked up to see Leo entering her room. He gave her a warm smile and perched on the end of her bed

"How are you feeling now?" he asked

"Fine" Erin replied quickly

Leo frowned but said nothing "I want you just to relax for the rest of the evening" he told her firmly

"I feel fine" she protested

"You're exhausted" he retorted "You only get a little sleep each night Erin and you barely got any last night. You're body needs its sleep"

"I don't feel tired" she whined

"Erin…" Leo said firmly and she pulled a face "You're more tired than you realise. Get some sleep for a couple of hours and if you're hungry when you wake up, then I'll get you something"

Knowing she was beaten Erin nodded and shifted down further into her bed. Leo gave her a gentle kiss on the head before leaving the room and closing the door quietly.

As soon as Erin started to close her eyes she felt a sense of tiredness wash over her and before she knew it she was plunged into a deep sleep

* * *

Erin's eyes flickered open and she glanced across at her clock which told her it was still the early hours of the morning. She frowned as she tried to realise what had stirred her from her slumber. Suddenly she heard the sound of raised voices from downstairs and she froze to the spot listening intently

"It's half past one in the morning" she heard the voice of Leo drift up to her room

"I want to see her" Erin froze as she recognised the voice of Nora

"She's made it perfectly clear she doesn't want to see you" Leo replied

Summoning up her courage Erin slipped out of her room and sat on the top of the stairs, just out of sight of the front door, but she was close enough so she could see what was going on

"She's my goddaughter" Nora bellowed

"That doesn't give you a right to see her" Leo said firmly "She's clearly frightened of you and you caused enough damage to last her a lifetime"

"I want to see her!" Nora said pushing past Leo and stepping into the house

Erin tried to shrink back from view but it was too late: Nora had spotted her

Nora's mood changed immediately as she saw the young girl "Erin…" she cooed "Come down and talk to me"

Erin shook her head wildly and shrank back towards her bedroom

"If you do not leave now I will call the police" Leo warned

"Erin, I only want to speak to you" Nora tried again but once more Erin denied her this

"Last chance" Leo warned but Nora took a step up the stairs closer to Erin

"Erin, go to your bedroom" Leo called to her "Everything's going to be okay"

Erin didn't need telling twice and she leapt in her bedroom just as Leo was on the phone to the police

* * *

Less than ten minutes later the police arrived at Leo's door, Nora had scarpered at the sight of the flashing blue lights but it still didn't put his mind at ease. The police were concerned about the incident and they were taking a statement from Leo to use if the case happened to go any further. Two police officers were now at the Dalton residence, a dark haired male was upstairs keeping an eye on Erin and a small blonde female was taking Leo's statement

"Did you try and restrain her at all Sir?" a young female police officer asked Leo

The pathologist shook his head "I still have my morals despite the threat she poses to my daughter"

"That would be Erin?" the officer asked and Leo nodded "Would it be alright if I have a quick talk with her?"

"Of course" Leo said leading the way upstairs "Just be warned she's a little shaken up at the moment and she's not at ease around strangers"

The officer nodded sympathetically and they stepped into Erin's bedroom. The room was now flooded with light and Erin was sitting cross legged on her bed whilst another male officer sat in her room with her to keep her company

"Erin, I'm Lucy and you've already met Ed" she said motioning to the man who was keeping Erin company "Now I know it's quite early in the morning but do you think we could have a little chat?"

Erin shrugged and stared down at the floor

"It'll only be for a few minutes. I just want to talk to you about Nora"

"I don't want to talk about her" Erin said wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her dressing gown

"I know" Lucy said gently "But we need to know about her so we can protect you"

"The law didn't help me last time" Erin said darkly

"They just want to help Erin" Leo said softly

Erin wiped her eyes again and nodded "Can Leo stay?" she asked quietly

"Of course" Lucy gave her a warm smile as Leo sat down next to Erin on her bed and gathered her up in his arms.

Erin felt much braver as Leo held her close and did her best to answer all the officer's questions

"Nora's your godmother. Is that right?"

"Yes" Erin confirmed "But I wish she wasn't" the last part was said so quietly only Leo could hear it and in response he tightened his hold on Erin

"When was the last tim you saw her?"

Erin paused "A few years ago. I don't know exactly"

"That's okay" Lucy smiled scribbling something down on her notepad

"Will she come back?" Erin asked the officers

"I'm sure Leo has told you this" Ed explained "But when you were adopted, the rights your original family had over you were changed. Now officially Nora has no right to see you unless you want her to. So she had no business coming round here and trying to barge her way in"

"Will you lock her away?"

Ed gave her a small smile "We can't lock her away for that but if we catch up with her then we'll give her a warning not to come near you again"

"If?" Erin started "You mean she's gone?"

Lucy nodded "But if she comes back, we've got measures in place" she fumbled around in her pocket and pulled out a small card "This has the number of the police station on" she told Erin "If she comes near you again you can call this number and me or one of my colleagues will come and make sure everything's alright"

Erin nodded

"I doubt she'll come back again" Ed told "I bet we scared her off" he told her with a grin which Erin tried desperately to return

"We're going to go now" Lucy told her

"Sleep tight" Ed told her with a wink as the three adults left the room

Erin climbed back into bed a little overwhelmed by the ordeal; she clutched the card Lucy had given her, in her hand repeating the number over and over again until she fully remembered it. She had a horrible feeling that she would need it in the near future.


	5. A Past She Never Knew

The next morning Erin was up bright and early for school; still feeling slightly shaken from the past two nights events she was determined to put them behind her. She wanted to show Leo how strong she was and anyway she had double art that day and she wasn't going to miss that for the world

"Are you sure you want to go in today?" Leo asked her over breakfast

"Yes" Erin said through a mouthful of toast and was reprimanded with a look from Leo

"Don't talk with your mouth full"

"Sorry" she said swallowing the mouthful she had "I'll be fine"

"I think another day will do you good…"

"Leo!" Erin whined "I have double art today and Nate and I are meant to be working on our biology presentation"

"Okay" Leo smiled at her enthusiasm "But you make sure you come home straight away this afternoon"

Erin nodded and grabbed her school bag as she headed for the door. Leo watched her carefully and noticed a slight hesitation as she stepped outside. She turned back slightly and noticed he was observing her, blushing slightly she took a deep breath and stepped out into the morning

* * *

"Morning Leo" Nikki said brightly as the older man walked into the lab

"Nikki!" Leo smiled "What are you do here?"

"Charming" Harry chuckled as he looked up from his paperwork "I said you weren't wanted"

Nikki pulled a face at Harry and shifted Alice onto her lap "I wanted to come and see you, I haven't been here in what seems like an age" Nikki smiled as she left Alice with Harry and followed Leo into his office

"How's things then?" she said sitting down in one of the chairs

"Fine" Leo smiled "Good"

"How's Erin?" Nikki asked and Leo sighed

"Harry told you?"

Nikki nodded "Well I had to force it out of him. But is she okay?"

Leo couldn't help but smile at how strong Nikki's maternal instincts were, even for a child that was not her own

"I think she's getting there" Leo told her and Nikki visibly relaxed "She was a little jumpy this morning but hopefully Nora's gone for good"

"Good" Nikki nodded content at Leo's explanation "I was thinking we should all get together sometime, maybe for a meal, you could invite Janet…."

"Nikki…" Leo groaned "Stop trying to sort out my love life"

Nikki grinned "Well I've got one of the men in my life under the thumb" she motioned to Harry "Now all I've got to do is work on you" she said and Leo could see that her mind was already plotting away

* * *

Erin sat in her art class, absentmindedly staring out of the window, completely unaware of her surroundings

"Is there something interesting out there?" a voice came and Erin turned around to see Mr Peters, her art teacher, standing there with his arms folded across his chest

"Sorry Sir" Erin blushed

"Try to keep your focus Erin" he shook his head "Da Vinci didn't finish the 'Mona Lisa' by watching the clouds go by"

Erin nodded and turned back to the painting she was doing

"What did Peters want?" Nate said sitting down beside her once their teacher had gone

"I was daydreaming" Erin said and Nate chuckled

"Daydreaming Dalton" he teased and Erin just pulled a face at him "So where were you yesterday?" he asked her

"I was sick, it was a twenty-four hour bug" Erin said, disgusted at how easily the lie had come out

"Not an Oscar winning performance but I suppose it will do" Nate shrugged

"Will you two get on with your work!" Mr Peters said coming back over to them

"Sorry Sir" the pair chimed

The bell rang to signify the end of the day and the class scurried around packing their things away

"Erin" Mr Peters called as she started to walk out the classroom "Can I have a quick word?" Erin looked unsure for a moment "You're not in trouble" he assured her

"I'll tell Miss Harris where you are in registration" Nate told her and Erin smiled gratefully

She made her way back into the classroom and pulled out a nearby stool

"Erin, are you okay?" Mr Peters asked her leaning against one of the desks

"I'm fine" the lie just slipped off her tongue and Erin felt a knot of guilt twist in her stomach

"You just seem a little distracted today and your work isn't quite up to your usual high standard"

"Sorry Sir" Erin chanted "It wont happen again Sir"

Mr Peters sighed "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"No Sir"

"How are things at home?"

There was a pause "Fine Sir"

"You know you can talk to me…"

"Yes Sir, it's just…" Erin paused and let her sentence trail off with a shake of her head

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing" Erin plastered a smile on her face which seemed a little too forced for the teacher's liking

"Alright" Mr Peters nodded, knowing it was unwise to push Erin any further "You can go now, but if there's anything, anything at all that's troubling you, please come and talk to me"

Erin nodded and slung her bad over her shoulder before exiting the classroom. Mr Peters frowned as he watched her go and made a mental note to keep a close eye on Erin for the next few weeks as she didn't quite seem herself. She had almost changed back into the quiet, shy little scrap that he had first met nearly a year ago

* * *

It had just started to drizzle as Erin made her way home, following the familiar route along the dismal streets

"Oy Dalton!" she heard a sudden cry that made her heart sink a little lower

She turned around to see Stacey and her cronies standing there looking particularly menacing

"I need to get home" Erin squeaked

"I don't like your tone" Stacey snarled and stepped forward cracking her knuckles

Erin fell to her knees waiting for the punches to rain down on her when she heard a sudden shout

"Leave her alone!" Erin looked up to see Nora standing there with a cigarette handing out of her mouth, holding Stacey by the scruff of the neck "You get out of here before you feel the wrong end of this" she motioned to the cigarette hanging out of her mouth

The girls scarpered and Erin tried to more but her body seemed frozen to the floor with fear

"Erin…" Nora cooed stepping towards the young girl

"Stay away from me" Erin scrambled back grazing her hands on the tarmac beneath her

"I just want to talk" Nora held her hands up

"You're not allowed to come anywhere near me" Erin squeaked trying to fumble around for the police woman's card. She internally screamed at herself as she remembered she had left it on her bedside table

"Look I did a good turn for you, now you've got to do a good turn for me" Nora said "All I want to do is talk to you and then I promise I will leave you and never come back"

Erin was suspicious but she knew that this seemed the only way to get Nora out of her life once and for all

"Okay" Erin reluctantly agreed

"I'm sorry for scaring you" Nora said but Erin was suspicious of this sudden plea for redemption "There's something I want to talk to you about"

"What?"

"Your father…" Nora said the word slowly

Erin felt her heart jolt in her body; Nora had picked the topic well knowing it would be the one thing Erin could not resist

"What about him?"

"Well after the death of your poor dear Karen…" Nora said and Erin shivered violently as the effects of the rain and the mention of her mothers name struck her

"I thought you should know the truth about your father…"

"You said he was useless" Erin said still very suspicious

"I didn't mean that" Nora said sweetly "I want to make amends, Look…" Nora fiddled around in her pocket and pulled out a crumpled photo and passed it to Erin

Erin smoothed out the old photo and gazed at it. There was a dark haired man standing there holding a small baby, all wrapped up in a blanket. The photo looked like it was taken in hospital and the man's pale grey eyes reflected a certain flicker happiness mixed with a distant echo of pain; a mixture that had resonance in Erin's own eyes to this day.

"Do you know who that is?" Nora asked

Erin shook her head, hypnotised by the photo in her hand

"That is Mark Lewis Jones" Nora said slowly emphasising each word "Erin, that's your father…."


	6. The Sins Of The Father

**Author's note: Just a brief warning, there's a little bit of violence in these next two chapters**

"I'm calling the police" Leo said as he suddenly stopped his pacing

"She might just be at a friends and lost track of time" Harry said

Leo turned to Harry "She should have been home at three, it's now seven. I've phoned her friends, they haven't seen her since school"

Harry turned to Nikki giving her a worried look, Erin hadn't returned home from school that day and no one could get hold of her

"Police please" they heard Leo say into the phone "I would like to report my daughter missing…"

* * *

Erin struggled to try and catch up with Nora as the hurried along the cold and increasingly darkening streets.

"Where are we going?" Erin called as she nearly skidded over in a puddle

"You'll see" Nora called back

Erin sighed as she quickened her pace; Nora had promised her that she would tell her all about her father. Ever since Erin could remember there had been a deep longing inside of her; she had needed to know about her father and this woman, despite the fear she evoked in Erin, could tell her the answers.

"Here we are…" Nora said stopping suddenly

Erin looked up at where they were and felt a sudden urge to vomit; they were back at her own home. A place Erin hadn't been since she'd run away all those months ago.

"Come on" Nora said grabbing Erin's wrist with a roughness she hadn't been accustomed too since living with Leo

"Nora…." Erin protested

"Get in!" Nora snarled and suddenly Erin wished she hadn't followed the woman at all

* * *

Back at Leo's house, the three pathologists had been joined by some police officers who assured them, they were doing all they could to find Erin

"Is there any chance she might have run away?" one officer asked

"No" Leo shook his head, the worry clearly etched onto his face "I've checked her things and there's nothing missing"

"Is there any reason she might want to leave home suddenly. Any arguments or something she was worried about?"

"Even if there was she wouldn't run away" Nikki said as she balanced a grizzling Alice on her knee "She would come to me or Harry, Erin's spent far too long on the streets in the past"

The officer scribbled something down on a notepad "We've seen the reports of her godmother turning up. Would Erin have gone with her perhaps?"

"I doubt it" the three said in unison

"She's terrified of Nora" Leo sighed "I can't imagine why she would go with her"

"What if she offered Erin something that maybe you three couldn't offer her?"

Harry looked at Nikki who just shrugged in response as she soothed their daughter who seemed to have realised something was wrong

"Her father" Leo said suddenly

"Sorry?" the officer looked up

"Erin's father committed suicide not long after she was born. She knows nothing about him and when Nora came here the first time she mentioned Erin's father"

"Oh god…" Nikki gasped "I bet Nora worked that out"

"I'm sure Erin will be safe" the officer assured her "We've got teams looking for her right now"

* * *

Erin stepped inside the house feeling a surge of memories and feelings flood back into her.

"I want to go…" she said quietly

"We've only just got here" Nora said through gritted teeth

"Please…" Erin began but was cut of as Nora gave her a sharp slap around the face.

The blow caught Erin off guard and she fell to the floor with a thump

"Shut up you whiny little brat!" Nora screamed

Erin looked up at the woman towering over her and saw the same look she had seen in her mother's eyes far too many time

"You and me have a little sorting out to do" Nora said roughly pulling Erin up

She looked at the cowering girl in her grip and laughed suddenly

"Just like your father, a coward till the end"

"My dad was not a coward" Erin protested but was silenced by another blow which sent her skittering across the floor

"So why did he kill himself?" Nora shouted

"He was ill" Erin said her voice thick with tears

"Wrong answer" Nora spat "He despised you just like your mother did"

"He loved me" Erin cried feeling hot tears splash down her face

"He despised you and he should have taken you with him when he had the chance" Nora said leaning over Erin "You've caused nothing but pain for your family and now you're going to pay for it. The sins of the father repeat on the daughter"

Erin felt the familiar feeling of blows raining down on her and soon she felt her body give up and slip into the darkness

* * *

The three pathologists sat together in Leo's living room each hoping for the best but thinking the worst

"They'll find her Leo" Harry assured the older man

"If anything happens to her…" Leo shook his head, unable to finish his sentence

"Nothing will" Nikki gave Leo a comforting squeeze on the arm "Erin's a sensible girl, she'll try and get in contact if she can"

"Erin…" Alice mumbled and looked up at Nikki with a grin

"Her first word" Nikki laughed softly and even Leo managed a smile

"We'll have to get Alice to repeat it when Erin comes back" Leo said tickling the infant under her chin

Harry smiled at Nikki, both had noticed Leo's sudden positive attitude and knew he was still holding out hope for the safe return of Erin.


	7. A Return To Her Roots

**Author's note: A little bit of violence again but this is the last of it**

Erin let out a groan as she blearily opened her eyes; a bolt of pain rushed through her and she vomited violently on the floor. Her whole body ached and she noticed a sticky red substance dripping onto the floor. Her head was pounding and her body screamed as white hot pain flashed through her but she kept trying to bring herself round some more

"You're awake then…" Erin looked up to see Nora standing over her

"Leave me alone" Erin croaked

"You're not getting away that easily" Nora spat

"I've not done anything" Erin said, her voice laced with exhaustion

"You killed Karen"

Erin's head span as she tried to make sense of what Nora was saying

"If you hadn't run away like the coward that you are then Ryan would not have killed her" Nora screamed at the young girl who cowered away

"I'm sorry" Erin burst into tears "I just couldn't take anymore"

"Pathetic" Nora sneered "You killed my best friend and now I will male you pay. No one will here you scream after I'm done with you"

She roughly pulled Erin to her feet; the girl struggled and tried to scream but received a sharp blow to the face for her efforts and roughly threw the girl to the floor. Erin stumbled back and landed hard on the floor shuddering as a sickening crack echoed across the room

"Pathetic" Nora hissed again but Erin had passed out once more and couldn't feel the blows that rained down on her

* * *

"We've found something" the officer said stepping into Leo's living room with a laptop in hand

"Is she alright?" Leo asked immediately

The officer opened up the laptop and a grainy CCTV image appeared on the screen

"The camera picked them up a little while ago" the officer explained

Nikki, Leo and Harry leant in to see the picture. Although blurry the image showed a young girl following a woman down the street

"Is this Erin?" the officer asked

"Yes" Leo said weakly "I would recognise her anywhere"

"Do you know who this woman is?"

"Nora Rhys" Leo said shaking his head in despair "Her godmother"

The officer nodded "They were spotted on Richardson Way"

Leo started in shock "That's where Erin used to live" he said recognising the street name immediately

"What number?"

"Twenty-three" Leo recited and the officer nodded

"We'll get some officers down there now" he told the trio

"Hang in there Erin" Leo whispered under his breath as the officer left the room speaking into his crackly receiver

* * *

Erin's whole body felt heavy and she really had to strain to her open her eyes. There was so much noise going on around her, it was making her head pound

"Can open your eyes for me Erin?" a voice said in her ear

"…want…Leo" Erin managed to say

"That's her father" she hear another voice say

"Erin, listen to me. I'm Jake and I'm a paramedic. Can you squeeze my hand?" she felt something slip into her hand and she mustered up all the strength she could manage to squeeze the hand in hers

"Good girl" the voice encouraged "We're going to take you to hospital now, just try and stay awake for me"

"Too…Sleepy…" Erin murmured and slipped away again

* * *

Leo paced around the waiting room with a look of fear on his face, he couldn't bear to think of the state Erin was in right now, he just wanted to hold her in his arms and tell her it was alright

"Leo" Harry said "Stop pacing"

The older man looked at him and took a deep breath as he sat down on the plastic chair next to Harry

"Thank you for being here…" Leo murmured and Harry nodded. He'd agreed to follow Leo down to the hospital and although Nikki had wanted to come, they both knew the hospital was no place for an infant. Harry had left Nikki with the promise to call her if when they heard some news.

Suddenly the doors opened and a tired looking doctor came into the room. Leo and Harry immediately stood to their feet as the Doctor walked over to them

"I'm Doctor Smith" he said shaking Leo and Harry's hand "I'm in charge of treating Erin"

"How is she?" Leo asked quickly

The Doctor paused "We're just prepping her for surgery right now"

"Is she hurt?" Harry asked

The Doctor nodded "There seems to be quite an amount of external and internal damage but we'll know more once we open her up. I'm sorry to have to spring this on you but we don't have much time. I need you to sign the consent forms for her surgery"

Leo closed his eyes for a second and then nodded scribbling his familiar signature on the form

"What are her chances?" he asked the Doctor as he passed the clipboard back

"I would prepare yourself for the worst" he replied solemnly, exiting the room leaving two very shaken men behind.


	8. Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

Harry fiddled with the phone cord as he dialled the familiar number and was relieved to hear Nikki's voice after the first ring

"_Harry?"_ the urgency was evident in her voice

"They've gotten her to hospital" Harry told her

"_How is she?"_ Nikki asked _"Is she hurt?"_

"They've just taken her in for surgery"

"_Oh god…"_ he heard Nikki moan _"How bad is it?_"

"The doctor's not very optimistic" Harry said softly

He heard Nikki let out a cry on the line _"I'm coming down right away"_

"There's nothing you can do" he told her "We just have to wait and hope that she holds on"

"_What if she…"_ Nikki started

"Don't even think it" Harry said, even though he too was thinking the same awful thought

When Harry returned to Leo, the older man had a large plastic bag in his lap

"The nurse brought her possessions…" Leo said softly

"Oh…" Harry said sitting back down

"I should check it's all here" he sighed

"Good idea…" Harry agreed

Leo pulled out Erin's school bag from the larger bag and set it on the ground. As he unzipped it he did a quick check through, completing a mental itinerary

"Her sketchpad's safe" he gave a weak smile

"That's one good thing" Harry said "Otherwise we'd have a fight on her hands when we see her"

Leo set her bag onto the floor and pulled out some sopping wet material

"They said it had gotten quite ripped and they had to cut it off her" he said and Harry looked over to see Erin's school uniform lying in tatters "I'm going to have to get her a new set"

"Oh she'll love you for that" Harry said sarcastically, knowing Erin's hatred of shopping

Leo paused suddenly as he fished around in her blazer pocket; he pulled out a crumpled piece of paper and set her belongings down on the floor

"What's that?" Harry asked

They gently prized the wet paper open and saw the photograph of the man holding a tiny baby.

"Is that…" the younger man asked

Leo nodded "She's got his eyes" he gave a weak laugh "And his smile"

"I knew she was tiny when she was born but look at her…" Harry gasped

The baby in the picture was tiny, almost dwarfed by the blanket she was in. The small form had reached out and had grasped her father's little finger in her whole hand

"He killed himself only a year later" Leo sighed

"Nora had the one thing she knew Erin wanted. She was the only one that had access to a life Erin had forgotten"

Leo nodded unable to voice any phrases, all he could do was stare at the small baby in the photo and cling on to the small spark of hope he had left.


	9. The Defintion Of A Fighter

It was just reaching the early hours of the morning when the doctor re-entered; both Harry and Leo were weighed down with fatigue but were wide awake when they saw the doctor enter the room

"She pulled through" Doctor Smith told them and Leo's face reflected utter relief "It was touch and go for a while but she kept hanging on in there. She's a real fighter"

"You're telling me!" Harry quipped

"She's in intensive care at the moment and we've put her on a ventilator to help with her breathing so we're keeping her sedated for the time being"

"What's the damage?" Harry asked

"There was some quite severe internal bleeding and she's sustained some broke ribs as well as a broken wrist. But we've patched her up and although she's got a long way to go she's over the worst of it"

"Can I see her?" Leo asked

The Doctor nodded "Of course"

Harry took Leo aside for a moment "I'll go back to Nikki now, give you and Erin some time alone"

Leo nodded his thanks and followed the Doctor down a maze of corridors until they reached the intensive care unit.

Leo stepped into the room and sighed loudly when he saw Erin; hooked up to numerous monitors Erin was lying very still in the bed. The only movement was from her chest as it gently rose and fell as the ventilator took over her breathing for her. Leo could see numerous cuts and bruises over her face which had been treated and her arm was encased in a cast as one of the nurses's propped it up on a pillow

"We're hoping she comes round in the next couple of days" the Doctor told him as he exited the room to give father and daughter some time alone

Leo sat down on a stool next to the bed and wrapped Erin's uninjured hand in his, careful not to dislodge any of the drips inserted there

"Oh Erin…" he whispered "What has she done to you?"

* * *

When Harry opened the front door he was met by Nikki who flung her arms around him. They passionately embraced and when he pulled away slightly for some air, he noticed tears streaming down Nikki's face

"She's going to be okay" he told her

Nikki nodded but still clung onto Harry tightly as he led her into the warmth of their house

"Is Alice asleep?" he asked looking upstairs

Nikki nodded "Out like a light as soon as I put her down"

"That's my girl" Harry smiled as he sat down on the sofa curled up against Nikki

"I missed you" Nikki said leaning in close to him

"I know…" Harry grinned

Nikki hit him on the chest "You're supposed to say I missed you too"

"Yes dear!" Harry replied

"And don't just say that to shut me up" Nikki protested "I know you too well Harry Cunningham…"

"And I love you too Mrs Cunningham" Harry said slipping his arms around Nikki's waist and pulling her back down onto the sofa when she tried to stand up

"Harry!" she squealed "You'll wake Alice"

"She's fast asleep you said so yourself" He protested kissing her neck

Nikki was about to reply when the sound of crying reached them. She looked at him in an 'I told you so' way and Harry sighed loudly

"I'll go shall I?" he said uncurling himself from Nikki

"She's your little girl, you said so yourself" Nikki teased

Harry just shook his head but the smile creeping onto his face gave him away

"If you settle her down, then maybe we'll have more time together tonight…" Nikki grinned

Harry paused for a moment before her clocked what she was getting at "Five minutes?" he asked

"It'll be fifteen knowing how long it takes you to get her back to sleep" Nikki said as she left the room with a smile on her face

* * *

The hospital room was silent as Leo sat at a constant vigil by Erin's bedside. She looked so pale and fragile lying there in the bed and all Leo wanted to do was hug her and tell her it was okay. Doctors and Nurses had been coming in to check on Erin and each time they told Leo she was making good progress but Leo just needed Erin back with him.

"Erin" he said taking her hand "I don't know if you can here me but I just want you to know that it's all right and everything's going to be fine"

"She'll be relieved to know that" a nurse said coming into the room "She'll probably be able to hear you right now and it does wonders for a patient to have people they love around them"

Leo nodded and gave Erin's hand a gentle squeeze

"She's been through the wars hasn't she?" the nurse gave Leo a gentle smile

"Erin's a little fighter" Leo said proudly

"So I hear" the nurse nodded "The Doctor said he's never seen anyone as stubborn as Erin. She just kept holding on in there"

"She's certainly that" Leo let out a weak laugh

"She'll come round before you know it" the nurse assured him

"I hope so" Leo nodded "She's got a lot of people who are worried about her right now"

The nurse checked one of the monitors "Her heart rate is back coming up nicely and her blood pressure is nearly back to normal. That's a good sign" she blushed slightly "Of course you know all this"

Leo smiled gratefully in return

Suddenly Leo's pager bleeped and he grimaced as he pulled it out of his pocket. It was a new case and Leo knew that technically he was on call tonight

"I can sit with her if you want" the nurse said sensing Leo's dilemma

"I can't leave her" Leo shook his head

"You're exhausted, if you don't go for your pager, at least go for yourself. You don't want Erin to wake up and find that the person she cares about most has made themselves ill. She's going to need you"

"I'll be back as soon as I can" he assured the nurse

"Take your time" she said and Leo nodded his thanks as he left the room taking a last glance at Erin who was lying motionless in the bed.


	10. Time To Wake Up

Erin tried to open her eyes but her whole body felt like a lump of led. The funny thing was she wasn't in pain like the last time she had been slightly conscious, Erin couldn't make any sense of it. The room was very noisy, there seemed to be a constant beeping in her ears and it was starting to annoy her. She felt a small amount of pressure on one of her hands and she assumed someone must be holding it.

Erin had been able to hear lots of voices that she knew but she felt too weak to open her eyes. Harry and Nikki had been there a few times, each taking turns to talk to her and try and persuade her to open her eyes. She's really tried but she'd just been too weak. Leo had been there too, many times as far as Erin could remember. She'd liked it when Leo had come and read to her; 'Wuthering Heights', 'Pride and Prejudice' and now they'd just started on 'The Origin Of Species'. She loved it when she came round and could hear Leo there next to her, it comforted her when the pain got too much and lulled her back to sleep when the fatigue threatened to overwhelm her.

But Erin was getting stronger day by day, her vigour was flowing back into her veins and the distant sounds were getting much louder. She knew it was time; Erin knew she had to wake up

* * *

Leo turned the page in the book and cleared his throat before he started the next paragraph. He looked down as Erin who was still lying unconscious; the Doctor's had kept her on the ventilator as she wasn't quite strong enough to breath on her own yet. During surgery they had found one of Erin's lungs had collapsed after a rib had badly perforated it. They'd told Leo she was getting stronger but she still was dependent on the machines which were keeping her going.

He shook his head to try and stop himself dwelling on the dark thoughts and looked down at the page again. Taking Erin's hand in his, he started to read where he'd left off

"Reflecting on this case, it occurred to me that if the _Melipona_ had made its spheres at some given distance from each other…."

Leo was cut of by the rapid beeping sound of the monitors and he looked up alarmed. A nurse caught his gaze and immediately ran over to the bed, taking one glance at the monitors she moved away and paged the doctor on call

Suddenly the room flooded with medical staff and Leo felt helpless just standing there watching, unable to do something. The doctor was calling her name and trying to get her to respond. The beeping was getting rapid now and they were shining a light in her eyes, her body abruptly convulsed and there was a gagging sound as a tune was removed from her throat. The doctor stepped back apparently satisfied by his work and moved over to Leo

"She was fighting the ventilator" he told the pathologist "That's why the monitors went crazy. Erin's stronger than we thought; we estimated it would at least be another day before she was strong enough to wake up"

"She'll be okay though?" Leo asked looking concerned

The medic nodded "We'll keep her in intensive care overnight and if she keeps making an improvement and doesn't deteriorate, we'll move her into one of the wards"

Leo nodded his thanks as the doctor left the room, he moved back to Erin's bed and rook up his position on the stool next to her. The masses of tubes down her throat had been replaced by an oxygen mask and Leo was relieved to see her chest shakily rising and falling of its own accord

"She's worn herself out" the nurse smiled as she took note of a reading on the monitor

Leo looked down at the sleeping girl and clutched her hand "She's getting better" he said and for the first time in what seemed like an age, he had a proper smile on his face

* * *

The next time Erin woke she felt different, she had a dull throbbing sensation all over her body and her throat felt like it was on fire. Her mind felt less cloudy as if the fog had finally lifted. She carefully opened her eyes and immediately shut them as the bright light almost seared her eyes, her senses were coming back to life now and she could smell the strong stench of disinfectant all around her. The beeping noise was still there and she could hear a distant hum of noise going on around her.

She tried again to open her eyes and this time was more successful, her pale eyes scanned the room as she tried to work out where she was. The room was bright white except for the bed-cover which was a pale blue. The smell of disinfectant was overpowering now and as she glanced around she saw there were a number of machines placed around her. Erin's mind was working quicker now and putting the pieces together at a rapid rate. Suddenly a young woman in uniform swam into her vision and that was all it took for the final piece to be put in place.

"Welcome back" the young woman said giving her a warm smile

Erin opened her mouth but all that came out was a long piercing scream

* * *

Leo was walking along the hospital corridors still feeling the euphoria of last night's events. He'd phoned Nikki and Harry to tell them the good news about Erin and he'd noticed the relief in their voices was as strong as his. As he turned another corner he heard a noise that he knew he would never forget; a scream echoed down the corridor and that was all it took for Leo to pick up his pace. He knew that scream anywhere; Erin was awake

As he darted into the room where she'd been transferred too, he saw Erin in floods in tears still letting out little shrieks as the medics tried to calm her down. They looked relieved when they saw Leo standing there and stepped back to let him through

"Erin" Leo said taking her hand "Look at me"

The young girl turned her gaze towards the familiar voice and she visibly relaxed

"Don't..like..h..hospital" she croaked, her voice hoarse from disuse

"Don't try and talk just yet" he soothed her "You need to calm down okay?"

Erin still looked very shaken and gripped on to Leo's hand tightly whilst she nodded in affirmation

"Well I think we can assume your lungs are all right" the doctor was saying "Though it probably wasn't a good idea for you to test them out quite so soon" he frowned "We'll keep you on oxygen for a little while yet Erin"

Erin said nothing but just tightened her grip on Leo who winced a little at her pincer like hold

"You need to rest Erin" the doctor told her "I'll be back to check on you in a little while" he said giving her a brief smile as he left the room, the nurse following quickly after him

Erin leant back onto the pillows and let out a little cough, Leo leant forward and poured herself a glass of water which she gratefully accepted. She drank quickly, spilling a little down her front in the process. When she was finished she settled back down but Leo noticed she was unable to meet his gaze

"How do you feel?" he asked her

"A little sore" she croaked but Leo could hear her voice was coming back to her

"Well that's probably from the surgery" he said noticing the lumpy outline of Erin's bandaged chest underneath the bed-covers

"I'm sorry…" Erin said suddenly

Leo nodded and gave her hand a gentle squeeze "I know…"

"I just wanted to know about my dad" she said and Leo could see a stray tear making its way down her cheek

"Of course you did" Leo said as he pulled the photo out of his pocket "It's completely natural"

He put the photo of her father on her lap but she turned her gaze away from it "I don't want to see it" she said and he could hear the emotion building in her voice

"Alright" Leo said softly taking it away and putting it back in his pocket

"Do you hate me?" Erin asked after a moment's silence

"Why would I hate you?" Leo asked looking shocked

"I went with her" Erin said unable to say her godmother's name

"You weren't to know what was going to happen" Leo told her and Erin nodded

The two of them sat there in companionable silence, knowing that nothing more needed to be said. Erin gazed around the room and suddenly took note of the white lump stuck to her arm

"What's that?" she said looking at her arm like it was going to attack her

"You broke your wrist, they had to put a cast on it" he told her

"But it's my drawing arm!" Erin cried out in shock "How am I meant to draw?"


	11. Visitors

Harry and Nikki walked slowly down the corridor hand in hand, both had been much relieved to get Leo's phone call to say that Erin had woken up and they'd popped in to Leo's to pick some things up for Erin for her stay at the hospital. They met Leo outside Erin's room, who greeted them warmly and took the Erin's bag of belongings from Harry whilst Nikki adjusted the baby carrier she had on the crook of her arm

"How is she?" Harry asked tentatively

"Very quiet, even by Erin's standards" Leo replied and Harry chuckled "She's not thrilled about being in hospital either"

"I forgot how much she hated them" Nikki said deep in thought

"They thought it was best to keep her in a side room" Leo explained "That way she doesn't have to deal with lots of strangers on the ward"

"How long are they keeping her in for?" Nikki asked

"A couple of weeks" Leo said

"She's going to love that" Harry said sarcastically as they made their way into the room

Erin was sitting up in bed leaning over what appeared to be a pad of paper, there was a nurse standing by her giving her words of encouragement as Erin shakily took the pen in her non-casted hand and attempted to draw

"See you nearly had it" the nurse smiled

"I can't do it" the despair was evident in Erin's voice as the pen skidded across the page

"You'll get there" the nurse said taking it from her and putting it on a nearby table as she left the room

"Hello Erin" Harry said leaning down to give the young girl a gentle hug and was soon followed by Nikki

"How're you feeling?" Nikki asked as the three adults sat down on chairs near her bed

"Okay…" Erin said although Nikki and Harry didn't believe her for a second

Erin's face was covered in cuts and bruises which still looked very sore and her arm was in a cast up to her elbow and they could see the outline of her bandaged chest. She was hooked up to a drip, one containing blood and the other containing morphine. But it wasn't just the physical injury that told of Erin's state: she had lost a certain sparkle in her eyes and that was more telling than any bruise of broken bone

"You've got more colour in your cheeks today" Leo noted but Erin just gave a one armed shrug

"We dropped home and got you some of your things" Nikki said motioning and Erin nodded gratefully

"Erin's been trying to draw with her other hand" Leo told them as he picked up the notepad she had been using earlier

"I can't do it" she repeated looking extremely despondent

Leo looked at the page "It's getting better"

"No its not" Erin frowned and burst into a coughing fit

Leo reached over and placed the mask on her face, Erin took deep breaths in and after a few minutes she pushed the mask away

"You're meant to be keeping it on" Leo chided "And not overexerting yourself"

"We brought you some books" Nikki said brightly, trying to keep Erin's mind off her arm "It'll keep you occupied whilst you're in here"

"Thanks" Erin said and Nikki was sure she saw a flicker of a smile

"And at least one of us will come and see you every day" Harry told her

"Can't I just go home?" Erin asked

Harry shook his head "They'll want to keep you in for a little while, you underwent major surgery and they just want to make sure you're better before you leave"

"It doesn't hurt at all" she protested

"That will be due to the morphine your on" Harry said motioning to the drip

Erin sighed knowing she was beaten and soon she settled into the pillows once more. She'd been feeling very tired all day and soon she feel into a deep sleep.

* * *

When she opened her eyes again, the room was darker and much quieter. She gently pushed herself up and winced as the stitches pulled

"Careful" a voice warned and she turned her head to see Dan Williams sitting on a stool next to her bed

Dan Williams was Erin's psychologist and she'd been seeing him for almost a year, although her appointment with him had been getting less and less, Dan knew full well that years of abuse couldn't be undone so easily so they'd kept up a regular contact which had been of benefit to Erin

"How're you feeling?" he asked

"Everyone keeps asking me that" she mumbled

Dan chuckled "I suppose it's a stupid question really, you're in hospital so you're not perfectly fine"

Erin nodded slowly and Dan put the notepad he had been looking at onto her bed

"I see you're keeping up the drawing" he said

"It's too hard now" Erin said and a few tear of frustration slipped down her face

"Yes you can" Dan told her "It's just going to take a little time that's all"

"I wish I'd never gone with her" Erin said suddenly

Dan pursed his lips, he'd heard all about her godmother and the hospital had kept his informed of her condition

"Well the thing is Erin; we can't undo what has already been done" he said gently "All we can do is look to the future and try and put the past behind us"

"I was so scared" she whispered

Dan nodded "Have you told Leo this?"

Erin shook her head "I can't remember all of it"

"That's not what I asked…"

Erin frowned "No I haven't told him" she said finally "I should have gone straight home and instead I was so stupid to go after her"

"You're not stupid Erin" Dan soothed

"Yes I am" Erin spat "Stupid, stupid, stupid!"

"Erin, look at me" Dan said but she wouldn't shift her gaze towards him "Alright then listen to me. It's not your fault what happened; she tricked you into going with her. She preyed on the one thing she knew you needed and that was an awful thing to do. No one of this is your fault; you weren't to know what was going to happen…"

"I just wanted to know about him!" Erin wept

"That's perfectly natural. We all want to know where our roots our and no one had ever told you about your father before so it's fine that your wanted to know about him"

"But I have Leo now…"

"Erin, do you remember I told you about the filing cabinet inside your head…."

She nodded "You said all my memories are like files but the one marked 'dad' has nothing in so it keeps floating about my mind waiting to be put away"

Dan smiled "Exactly, now you were given the chance to have something to put in that file, so of course you took it. No one is cross with you for doing that; no one is cross with you at all"

"She gave me a photo" Erin said quietly

Dan nodded and gave it to Erin "Leo said you might want it later"

"I look like him" she said gazing at the photo

"Yes you do a bit" Dan agreed "But that doesn't mean you will become him. Remember you are the one in control of your life and what you become is down to you and you alone. It doesn't matter if you have his eyes or his hair, at the end of the day, you are you. You are an individual and only you can decide where to go"

Erin nodded and passed the photo back to Dan "I don't want to look at it anymore"

"Alright" Dan said taking it back "We'll keep it safe for you"

"Please throw it away" Erin said

"Why?" Dan asked

"Because it reminds me of…" Erin couldn't finish her sentence and just motioned over her bruised and battered body

"You might change your mind later" Dan reasoned

"I doubt it" Erin said sadly

Dan sighed gently, knowing they had a lot more work to do "I'll leave you to get some rest now" he said standing up "I'll come and see you soon"

Erin nodded and turned over in her bed, away from Dan and away from the world so no one could see the tears falling down her face.


	12. The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

Erin was officially sulking. She'd been stuck in hospital for a week and the doctor had told her that morning that she was staying another whole week. Her arm was still very sore and now there was a dull pain in her abdomen due to her morphine intake being decreased. Erin hated hospitals and all the doctors and nurses coming in to poke and prod her, the stench of disinfectant and the fact Leo had to leave her all alone at night. As far as she was concerned life could not get any worse.

"Good morning Erin" a doctor came into the room for his morning rounds "You're up early" he commented

Erin gave an inward sigh; it just had gotten so much worse

"I couldn't sleep" she mumbled

The doctor nodded, remembering that the nurses on the ward had told him the exact same thing "I'm going to prescribe you something that will make you go to sleep at night. It's important to get some sleep whilst your body is healing" he told her scribbling a note down in her file

Erin nodded but kept her gaze down on the bed as she traced a pattern on the covers

"How's your arm today?" he asked

"Sore" she said still not looking up

"It will be for a little while I'm afraid" the doctor said sympathetically "If it gets too bad then just tell one of the nurses and they can sort it out"

Erin nodded once more

"Can I look at your stitches now?" he asked her and she nodded lying back making sure the bed-covers were pulled up to her hips as the doctor examined the surgical incision "That's healing nicely" he told her with a smile

Erin was about to reply when a coughing fit overtook her and made her double up in pain as her ribs screamed in protest as the sudden movement

"Alright Erin" the doctor soothed helping her sit up straight as he pulled an oxygen mask over head "Just take deep breaths"

Erin knew she had no choice but to concentrate on what the doctor was telling her and soon the tight feeling in her chest subsided

"Better?" he asked and she nodded, lying back down on the pillows feeling thoroughly exhausted "Your lungs are still a little weak and it'll take a little while for them to get back to full strength. I want you to just take things easy for a bit and keep using the oxygen, it'll make breathing a little easier for you"

"Okay" Erin said weakly as she felt the exhaustion of the morning's events pulse through her body

"I'll come and check on you later" she heard the doctor say as she drifted off into a fitful sleep

* * *

When Leo entered the room later that morning he found Erin fast asleep in the bed and a doctor standing over her fiddling with the monitors

"How is she today?" Leo asked

"She's making progress" the doctor told him "But her lungs are a little weak so we're keeping a close eye on her"

"She's sleeping finally" Leo smiled as he watched Erin chest gently rise and fall as she slumbered

The doctor nodded "The police have been on my back again about talking to her" he told the pathologist

"I thought they might do soon" Leo admitted

"They can't come near her unless they have my permission" the medic said "I wanted to wait until she was stronger"

"She'll have to face the world sooner or later" Leo sighed

"Have the arrested the person that did this to her?"

Leo nodded "She's in custody and they're building a case against her as we speak"

"Good" the doctor said firmly "At least there's some amount of justice in the world"

* * *

When Erin finally woke up again the sunlight was streaming through the windows and she could hear the ward outside her room bustling with life

"Leo?" she mumbled sleepily

"Right here" he said squeezing her hand

She opened her eyes fully as Leo helped her sit up in bed, as she looked around the room she saw Nikki sitting on a chair by the other side of her bed holding a sleeping Alice in her lap

"I'd thought I'd pop in to see how you were doing" Nikki explained and Erin silently thanked her

"There's something we need to talk to you about" Leo said ominously "The police want to come and take a statement from you about what happened"

Erin nodded slowly as she absorbed what Leo was telling her "I don't remember everything" she said "Some things are hazy"

"I know" Leo said eyeing the nasty graze she had on the side of her head

"I don't want to go through it again" Erin said quietly

"The police need to now what happened so they can lock Nora away" Nikki said as Erin visibly flinched at Nora's name

"No one is blaming you for what happened" Leo said

"That's what Dan said when he came to visit me" Erin mumbled

"And he's right" Nikki assured her

"We'll stay with you if you want" Leo said and Erin seemed slightly more appeased

"It'll be over soon" Nikki told her as two police officers entered her room

"I don't think so" Erin said quietly to herself unaware that both Leo and Nikki ha caught her musings

* * *

An hour later and the police were gone; the interview had been harrowing for all of them. Erin had to relive the events that had nearly killed her and Leo and Nikki had to hear Erin's horrific account of what she had been through. She had been thoroughly shaken by her experience and it had taken the two pathologists a while to calm her down.

Now Erin was lying back in her bed feeling slightly deadened to the day's events, all day long people had tried to keep her spirits up but to no avail. The stream of sunlight that had lit up her room had now turned into night and she'd been left alone once more to try and get some rest. The nurse hadn't come round with her medication yet and so Erin was lying wide awake in the room which was darkening with each shadow that appeared on the walls.

Suddenly the door opened and she looked up to see Harry walking into the room. He sat down next to her bed and gave her hand a small squeeze as a greeting

"I thought visitors hours were over" she questioned

Harry shook his head "The nurse told me I can have a few minutes before she comes with a sleeping pill. Apparently you're a special case" he teased and Erin frowned

"I want to go home" she said finally knowing that she could speak openly to Harry "I want this just to be a bad dream"

"Of course you do" Harry told her "And the doctor will let you go home soon"

"Why do bad things happen to me?" she asked

"They don't!" Harry protested

"They do!" Erin whimpered "My dad died, and then mum…" Erin swallowed hard "I ran away and then this happens" she said and Harry could see the beginnings of tears in her eyes that were threatening to make themselves known

"What about the good things" he said "Meeting Leo, me and Nikki, having Leo foster and then adopt you, have books to read and your drawings"

"I can't do that anymore" she sighed motioning to her cast

"That's only temporary" Harry told her "It'll be off before you know it"

The door opened again and a nurse walked into the room gving both Erin and Harry a warm smile

"I've got your sleeping pills" she said to Erin

"I'll be going now" Harry said standing up and giving Erin a gentle kiss on the head

"Bye" Erin said sadly

"Keep remembering the good things" he told her as he left the room

The nurse poured her a glass of water and Erin took a sip as she swallowed the small pills. Almost immediately she felt the effects and was soon drifting off into a sleep she wasn't sure if she really wanted.


	13. Coming Home Again

The weeks passed quickly and finally the doctors were please enough with Erin's progress that they allowed her to go home on the condition that she was to rest and not push herself too hard. The news couldn't have come sooner for Erin who was relieved to get out of the hospital where she had been for nearly two weeks. Now she was fully dressed and just waiting for Leo to come and pick her up, her bag was packed and her arm was carefully nestled in a sling which was being pulled down by the weight of the cast

Leo poked his head round the door "I've signed your discharge forms and booked you an outpatient's appointment, so we can go now"

Erin smiled and slipped off the bed, her legs wobbling slightly underneath her, weak from the lack of use over the last three weeks

"Careful" Leo said lending her a supporting arm as she stood back up "You've got to take things slowly" Erin nodded as Leo passed her a jacket "Its cold out there" he told her "You'll be needing it"

He helped her slip one arm into her jacket and draped the other side over her injured side, being careful not to knock her arm. Slowly they made their way out of the hospital, they took each step leisurely as Erin's ribs were still very painful and the stitches from surgery were pulling slightly. Finally they made it to Leo's car where he helped her in; Erin slipped in with a grunt of pain but looked relieved to be out of the hospital.

As they pulled away from the hospital, Erin was very quiet and Leo had tried to keep up her spirits by telling her all that she had missed but Erin could only muster up the occasion murmur. There was a moments silence between the pair and Leo was starting to get worried but this was broken when Erin finally spoke

"When can I go back to school?" she asked

"The doctor said you've got to stay home and rest this week" Leo told her firmly

"I'll be behind on school work!" she protested

"You caught up on some when you were in hospital" Leo told her "I spoke to your teachers and they said that you're not that far behind"

"I miss Nate" she said quietly and Leo gave a perceptive smile

"Maybe we can ask him to come round…" he suggested

Erin mumbled something inaudible but finally nodded her head and Leo gave her an encouraging smile

"Nikki and Harry are coming round later if you feel up to it" Leo told her and she nodded "We thought we'd have a little get together to celebrate…"

"…my release from that prison"

Leo chuckled "Erin it was a hospital and you were only there for a couple of weeks"

"It felt like a lifetime" she grumbled

"I know" Leo smiled "Janet's coming round as well" he told her cautiously

He waited for her reaction but she seemed content with the idea and soon they fell back into a comfortable silence.

* * *

Erin was lying on her bed; finally back in her own bedroom when she heard a knock at her door. Carefully standing up she opened it to see Leo standing there

"Are you unpacked?" he asked her as she let him into the room

Erin nodded and motioned to the empty overnight bag on the floor

"It must feel good to be home"

Erin nodded again, unable to voice her feelings adequately

"Harry, Nikki and Janet will be round about seven" Leo told her and Erin glanced at her clock which read half past two "In the meantime I thought you'd enjoy some company"

Erin frowned as Leo stepped back but it soon disappeared when she saw Nate standing in her doorway just behind Leo

"Nate!" she squealed launching herself at the young boy who looked equally pleased to see her

"I'll leave you two to it" Leo said as he left the two companions to share a moment of privacy

"I missed you" Nate said as they both sat down on her bed together

"I missed you too" Erin said shyly

"Are you better now?" he asked taking a good look at her. The cuts were starting to heal and the bruising had started to fade but it was the look in her eyes that told Nate he should be concerned

"I'm fine" she assured him as she slipped her hand into his

"Why didn't you tell me about your godmother?" Nate asked her "I knew something was wrong with you in art that day" he stood up suddenly and started to pace around her room

"I'm sorry" Erin said quietly picking at her sling

"I could have done something, why didn't you let me help?" he asked, the tone in his voice becoming more and more urgent

"I'm sorry" she repeated

"Stop apologising!" he said loudly and Erin flinched "Sorry…" he said and Erin let out a watery laugh as a few stray tears fell down her cheeks "It's just that, we're best friends Erin and I don't want anything to happen to you. I care about you so much and I just want to help"

"I know…" Erin said softly and Nate sat down next to her once more and gave her a smile

"When are you coming back to school?" he asked

"Next week" Erin rolled her eyes "I have to rest this week. Doctor's orders apparently" she groaned

"Leo won't let you back any sooner?"

Erin shook her head "He's going to barely let me leave me bed!" she grimaced "I am going to be so bored"

"It's a good thing I brought you school work then" Nate said pointing to a pile of books that had been left on her desk

"Oh you are kind" Erin said sarcastically giving him a small shove off her bed

The two of them sat in quiet company, both content with their silence. Nate looked at Erin who gave him a warm smile but there was something inside of him, telling him that Erin was far from okay. He looked at her once more and almost as fast as the smile had appeared, it had disappeared once more, leaving her with a rather downcast look that unsettled Nate more than he cared to admit.

* * *

At seven, just like Leo had promised, Nikki and Harry arrived at the front door looking pleased to get out of the cold evening

"Janet's been held up in traffic" Leo told them "So she's going to be a bit late"

Harry and Nikki nodded as the made their way into the living room; Erin was spread out on the floor with reams of paper all around her and she was intently practising her drawing

"She's been like that for a couple of hours now" Leo told them quietly "Erin!" he called to her "Look who's here…"

"Hello" Erin said not taking her eyes off the paper

"You're improving" Harry said craning his neck to see what Erin was drawing

"It's rubbish!" Erin snapped and hastily screwed up the paper

Harry shot a worried look back at Nikki and Leo who were looking equally concerned

"I'll go and make up something to drink" Leo said moving out of the living room

"I'll come and help" Nikki said leaving Erin and Harry alone for a moment

Harry carefully put the baby carrier Alice was in, on a nearby chair and sat down on the floor next to Erin

"What's wrong?" he asked

"Nothing's wrong" Erin said coldly, refusing to look at him

"Did you think of any other good things?" Harry said cocking his head on one side

She shook her head "No, but I thought of plenty more bad things"

"I don't want to hear those" Harry said picking up the pad of paper Erin had discarded on the floor

Erin shakily climbed to her feet and winced as her ribs screamed in protest, she let out a whimper of pain and in a flash Harry was on his feet and gently helping her sit down on a chair

"You've got to take things steadily" he chided

"So everyone keeps telling me" Erin sighed as she clutched her side in pain

"The wounds will heal" Harry told her "Even the ones that you can't see"

Erin looked at him sadly and gave a one arm shrug to at least acknowledge what he was saying even if deep down, she wasn't sure if she could ever believe what he was saying.


	14. A Family In Disharmony

Erin was utterly exhausted; Janet, Nikki and Harry had all gone home and it took all the energy in Erin's body to drag herself up the stairs and into her room. She hadn't felt so fatigued since she'd been living on the streets and it was not a feeling she particularly wanted to remember

"Have you taken your medication?" Erin looked up to see Leo standing in her doorway

"Yes" she said quickly and Leo frowned

"Really?" he questioned and Erin nodded "So what are these?"

Leo pulled a packet of pills from behind his back and dropped it on Erin's lap. She looked down at them and saw her stomach lurch when she saw the medication for that day was still firmly nestled in its packet

"You never used to lie" Leo said sitting down on the end of her bed

"I never used to have anything to lie about"

"Erin…" Leo warned noticing the frustration that was building in her face

"I just want everything to go back to normal" Erin grumbled "I hate everyone treating me like I'm made of glass and that I'll break into a thousand pieces at any moment"

"No one's treating you like that" Leo's tone was one of assurance but Erin was not buying it

"Yes they are!" she shouted "And if you can't see that then you're more stupid than I first thought" Erin bit down hard on her tongue as she saw the hurt on Leo's face

Leo stood up stiffly and walked out of her room, clearly not in the mood to argue with Erin "Take your medication" he told her before swiftly shutting the door behind him, leaving Erin in the company of the shadows which came with the darkening night.

* * *

"She really shouted at you?" Nikki's face was sculpted into an expression of shock

Leo nodded slowly "I've never seen her loose her temper before over something so trivial"

The next morning had come still bearing the heavy stillness that had fallen over the Dalton household from the previous nights events. Leo had called Nikki round that morning, knowing that he had to attend a meeting, despite his reluctance he knew that his presence would only irritate Erin more and the best thing for her to do was to give her so space to cool off.

"She's probably just overtired from what she's been through in the last few weeks" Leo assured Nikki who still looked very worried

"Has she said any more about it?"

Leo shook his head "I'm still uneasy about leaving her alone…"

"I don't mind looking after her, you know I don't" Nikki smiled kindly

Leo gave a quick glance at the clock "I've got to get going now" the unwillingness in his voice was evident "You know where everything is so help yourself"

"It'll all work out Leo" Nikki told him "She cant stay angry at you forever"

Leo wanted to believe Nikki's words but he knew Erin better than anyone and he didn't like this change on her personality one bit.

* * *

Erin buried herself deeper in the duvet as she heard the successive knocks on her door

"I'm going to work now" she heard Leo's muffled voice through the door "Nikki's downstairs and she'll be staying all day if you want someone to talk to"

Erin bit down on her lip making sure she didn't make a sound; she wasn't going to give Leo the satisfaction of it. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt this angry, it was a horrible fire of lava building up inside of her and it threatened to spill out at any moment. Finally she heard Leo go away and she rolled over in her bed, wincing slightly as she put a little too much pressure on her wrist and the stitches pulled in her stomach. Erin gave a muffled scream into the covers, as much as she hated to admit it, she wasn't okay at all.

* * *

As Harry walked into the cutting room he knew something was immediately wrong with Leo. The older man's eyes reflected a certain amount of exhaustion and had lost the sparkle Harry was used to seeing

"Leo?" he said moving forward to the pathologist who was currently elbow deep in a chest cavity

"John Doe in mid-twenties looks like the cause of death was an overdose" Leo said removing an organ and placing it on the scales

"How's Erin?"

Leo ignored him and carried on "I cant quite work out what these pills are, they're too digested to see a brand name, we'll send off fro a toxicology report and hopefully that should shed some more light"

"Leo!" Harry said a little louder and the older man finally looked up at him "What happened?"

"Erin shouted at me last night" Leo said, cursing himself at how pathetic it sounded

Harry chuckled softly "She's a teenager Leo, they're not exactly know for their happy cheerful moods"

"But this is _Erin_"

Harry paused for a moment thinking over what Leo had just divulged. Sure enough he couldn't remember a time when Erin had ever really shouted, there had been times when she'd gotten into a scuffle at school but not one time could he remember her ever raising her voice. He was shocked by this as for a girl who had been through so much pain; she certainly had a lot to shout about.

"It's out of character admittedly" Harry finally said "But it's not totally impossible. She's not had the best start in life and she's had a tough time of it lately"

"It's not that" Leo said pushing his hand back into the corpse "You must understand that it really pains me to admit this but when she shouted at me, she looked so much like her mother…"

**Author's note: I know this is a bit of a short chapter but I thought that was a good point to end it there. **

**I apologise profusely for my lack of updates to this story and the others. I have had a couple of exams at school and revision pretty much took over my life. I also had writer's block on this story and was seriously considering just deleting it but thanks to your kind comments, especially from charlotte88, I got my muse back and decided to carry it on**

**I am trying to make more for fanfiction, and I will try to update more regularly, consider it a late new year's resolution!**


	15. The Consequences Of Rage

When Leo got back later that evening, the house was still heavy with the tension that had not left from that morning. He walked into the living room to find Nikki just settling a sleepy looking Alice down in her carrier

"Hey" Nikki smiled at him as Leo set his briefcase down and shrugged off his thick overcoat

"How's Erin?" he said glancing up in the direction of the stairs

Nikki sighed as she turned away from Alice "Erin hasn't come down all day. I tried taking her up some lunch but she refused to even open the door to me"

Leo grimaced, he'd hoped that Erin would have come round in the company of Nikki, he knew they needed to have a talk and had been desperately wishing that Erin would be in a civil room that evening, but apparently fate was not going to be on his side tonight.

"Thank you for trying" he said giving Nikki a weak smile as she collected her things

"Will you be all right tonight?" she asked him

"We'll cope" he assured her "Now go on back to home and stop worrying so much" Leo chided as he noticed a shadow of apprehension flicker across her face

Nikki forced a brief smile onto her face and as she gave Leo a peck on the cheek goodbye, she couldn't help but shift her gaze to the top of the stairs where Erin's room was. She was worried about Erin and knew that her fears were being confirmed by Leo and probably Harry as well.

* * *

Erin sat in her darkening room, engulfed by the gloomy shadows that were pushing the last dregs of daylight out of her room. Her whole body ached and she really wished she had taken her painkillers, but that would have meant leaving her room, something she was not prepared to do.

Suddenly she heard the door creak open and she had to squint as a chink of light flooded the room

"Erin" she heard Leo say softly "Do you want something to eat"

"Not if it's made by you" she snapped

She heard Leo sigh "I don't like this attitude Erin" his tone was one of warning

"Well I'm fed up with what everyone thinks!" she shouted, her face contorting into an expression of anger

"You are well within your right to be angry and upset" Leo reasoned with her "But I will not have you being rude. Is that understood?"

"Get lost!" she screamed and slammed her bedroom door shut, closing herself off to Leo and the rest of the world

* * *

The night was long and hard for Leo, he lay awake the whole night long listening to the crashes and thumps from Erin's room. He could only assume she was demolishing her room in another passionate fit of anger. Half of Leo wanted to go in there and stop her before she really hurt herself but the other half knew not to give any attention to these actions as it would only drive Erin into another fit of rage and he wasn't going to give her any recognition for her bad behaviour.

"I hate you!" the scream was muffled by another crash from the room but Leo just rolled over in bed

"I wish you'd just left me there in the car park" this statement was followed by a stream of expletives Leo wasn't aware that Erin even knew

The profanities and threats were kept up long into the night and soon Leo dropped off to the sound of Erin expressing her deep and burning hatred for Leo and the rest of the world.

* * *

Erin woke the next morning feeling utterly exhausted. Her voice was hoarse from screaming long into the night and her body ached from the strenuous activity of destroying her room. She was lying curled up on the floor, ignoring the protests from the rest of her body, as she sobbed gently into herself. These weren't tears of emotion, Erin had long since passed that stage, but these were tears of frustration, anger and confusion about the direction in which her life was leading.

Leo hadn't been to speak to her that morning, but she'd been able to hear snippets of hushed phone calls throughout the few hours she'd been awake. The doorbell had been rung a few minutes ago and she heard Leo mutter a greeting. Although his voice had been muffled, she could hear it had a different quality to it, instead of his usual tone; it seemed to be laced with a sort of emotional tiredness to it. Something that Erin had never heard before and although she would never admit it, it was something that pained her to the very depths of her soul.

There was a brisk knock at the door and Erin immediately internalised her crying. Listening intently to get any clue to who it was, she shivered as another wave of emotion mixed with pain rippled through her body. The door clicked open but Erin refused to acknowledge her visitor. Instead she curled herself up in her duvet and tried to block out the fast approaching events.

* * *

When Harry Cunningham stepped into Erin's bedroom he was appalled at the utter bombsite that he was met by. All of the girl's possessions were streamed across the room. Her wardrobe had been ripped open and her clothes scattered into colourful heaps on the floors, books lay abandoned on the floor, their pages wounded by a seemingly vicious. A soft toy dog lay on its back, looking worse for wear than it usually did and Harry couldn't help but notice the stuffing that seemed to emerge from a rip in the bed was lying on its side and Harry could see the frame had splintered from a whole room was falling apart from the items inside the room to the walls which looked as equally damaged as the rest of the setting.

As he stepped further into the room, he noticed the centrepiece of all the chaos; Erin Jones was lying curled up in her duvet so tight it practically cocooned her. The duvet shook as the young girl sobbed out the rest of anger. Harry was not going to be deterred by this sudden expression of passive emotion, he'd spoken to Leo and they both knew what needed to be done

"Erin, sit up properly" he called to her in a stern voice

The duvet froze, obviously shocked at hearing a new tone of voice that wasn't usually associated with the current speaker

"Go away" came the muffled reply

"Erin Marie Jones, sit up right now!" Harry half shouted crouching down on the floor in front of her

Registering the use of her full name, the girl uncurled herself from the duvet and Harry was suddenly greeted by a wild, angry expression which didn't seem to fit Erin at all

"Erin Marie _Dalton_" she hissed

"Really?" Harry questioned "Because right now I'm not sure you deserve the surname Dalton. Not with your appalling behaviour"

"Get lost" she shouted but Harry only shifted himself closer towards her

"Erin, I truly sympathise for your situation, really I do. No one should have to face the abuse you did, no one should have to feel so alone like you were for so many years. But what I will not accept it this appalling behaviour from you" Harry said sternly "You're hurting everyone you care about Erin and it is unacceptable"

"Go away!" Erin screamed and lunged towards Harry in a fit of rage, ingnoring the rush of pain which swept through her body

Unluckily for Erin, Harry was too quick for her and had already pre-empted her manoeuvre. He took her firmly by the shoulder, being careful to avoid her arm, in such a way she was unable to hurt herself or anyone else. She flailed and tried to fight his hold but his strong arms kept her still and all she could do was scream at him.

Eventually the screams subsided and Harry now held a shaking young girl who was trying to catch her breath

"Are you finished now?" he asked and she nodded

"Go away, I hate-" she said shakily

"We're not having anymore of that" Harry told her sternly, interrupting her before she could fly off the handle once more "You are going to listen to me. I'm not quite sure what's gotten into you recently but it's got to stop. You're hurting everyone around you, especially Leo"

"Leo doesn't care…"

"Of course not" Harry said sarcastically "That's why he was on the phone to me this morning, he was so upset because of how much you've been hurting him"

Erin twisted her head to look at Harry in shock, she didn't realise how much she'd hurt Leo. She had just been so angry and so frustrated about everything that had happened to her….

"I know you're hurting right now" Harry said interrupting her musings "But you can't go on like this. It's not fair on everyone else when you take your anger out on them"

"They don't understand how I feel" Harry unwrapped his arms from around the young girl and watched her closely

"That's because you're not letting them understand. They can't come near you without you verbally abusing them. How can they understand how hurt and angry you are if you don't communicate properly with them?"

Erin just shrugged and refused to say anything. As Harry studied the young girl he noticed how she was hunched over slightly, cradling her casted wrist close to her body

"Have you hurt yourself?" he asked,

Erin nodded "Can I take a look?" he asked gently and the girl mumbled in affirmation

Harry gently took the girl's casted arm in his lap, her felt the weight of the cast agaisnt in his hands and could see Erin wince as she moved her arm. The cast didn't look damaged but Harry could see that there was something wrong. Above her elbow where the cast finished, there was fresh bruising and her elbow was positioned at an awkward angle. As he moved his gaze down to the bottom of the cast where her fingers were he could see that they were swollen and some were set at an unnatual angle

"Can you wiggle your fingers for me?" he asked gently

Erin slowly followed his instructions and tried to move her fingers. She winced in pain and Harry saw she was unable to move the badly angled ones

"Can you push against my hand?" Harry placed his palm against hers and Erin tried to give it a push but pratically made no effect. The pain in her face was evident but Harry carried on his examination "And can you pull my fingers" he said holding out his hand

Erin tried to pull but gave a wince at the sudden motion and her eyes filled with tears.

"I think you've broken it again" he told her "you're meant to be taking things steady and razing your room to the ground probably hasn't helped your wrist to heal. We need to keep it elevated for the moment"

Harry rummaged amongst the debris on the floor until he came across her discarded sling. He gently took her arm and positioned it so he could slip the sling around it. He made sure the injured limb was carefully nestled in the material and secured in place so Erin couldn't cause any more damage.

"How are the ribs?" he asked

"Sore" she muttered, her voice still hoarse from the screaming

"Have you taken your painkillers recently?"

Erin shook her head "Okay" Harry said gently, not trying to push the girl too hard. She was calm now and Harry was determined to keep it that way

"Shall we go downstairs?" Harry asked, knowing that her wrist needed sorting out. He gingerly stood back and held out his hand to her.

Erin nodded and tried to stand upto grasp his hand but immediately fell to the floor once again,, the pathologist winced as he saw her broken arm thud to the floor. A sob escaped her lips and she curled up in a ball once again, her face contorting with pain

Harry immediately shot to the floor next to her, trying to uncurl her was a vain attempt as she was coiled so tightly. But as he pulled back her duvet and flung it across to a clearer part of the floor, he noticed why she'd been in pain. The girl's left leg was blotched with black and blue and had swollen up to at least double the size it normally should have been

"What happened?" he said as he helped her sit up properly

"I fell over" she sobbed

"When you were throwing things about?" he asked and she nodded slowly

"Is it broken?" the girls voice was filled with fear

"I'm not sure. Can you move it?" Erin tried but let out another cry of pain

"We need to get it looked at again, as well as your wrist…" Harry told her firmly

"It really hurts" she sobbed and Harry nodded sympathetically

"We need to get your downstairs" Harry said, as much as he didn't want to move her leg, he knew they had to get her seen too

"No!" her voice quivered at the thought of it

"I'll be as gentle as I can" he said stepping over towards her andscooping her up into his arms

Erin winced at the movement and her body pulsed with pain with each step that Harry took

* * *

Leo looked up as Harry entered the room, he'd heard the shouts and screams from upstairs but he hadn't expected this. Harry entered the room with a sobbing Erin cradled in his arms

"Set her down over here" Leo said getting up, his face full of concern for the young girl "What happened?"

"She hurt herself last night. From what I can work out she punched the wall and it seems to have undone any recovery the fracture was making" Harry told him simply "I'm not sure what she's done to her ankle. It looks like she's taken a bit of a fall..."

Leo nodded and immediately assumed his position next to Erin as he cradled her on the sofa "There's some ice in the freezer Harry" he said and the young man nodded

"I'm sorry" Erin managed to blurt out through her increasing tears

"Ssh" Leo soothed "Let's just concentrate on you for the moment. Can I check you over?" he asked and she nodded

Leo carefully unwound himself from Erin and grimaced as he took a look at her arm

Harry came back in with a bag of ice wrapped in a tea towel "Her arm is definatley broken" Leo told the younger pathologist "I can't tell if her ankle is, there's too much swelling at the moment"

The younger man nodded "This is going to hurt Erin but it'll help I promise" Harry said perching on the edge of the sofa and applying the ice to her ankle "We need to stop the swelling"

The girl let out a moan of pain as the coldness seeped through to her ankle and she gripped onto Leo tightly. The older man placed a comforting kiss on the top of her head and knew that things were slowly getting back on track

"We need to get her checked over" Harry said "Her wrist is starting to swell as well"

"I'm not going to hospital!" Erin protested

When Leo looked down at her, all the traces of her mother had gone and all he could see now in Erin's face was her utter contempt for hospitals.

**Author's note: I am such an awful, awful person. Not only for what I'm putting Erin through which is actually very nasty but for not updating. **

**I am really, really sorry but school went all hectic (well still is hectic) and I've had a pretty catastrophic couple of weeks which really put me off writing or updating any stories. Believe me I did try but when I tried to write this chapter it ended very miserable and not how I wanted it to go at all.**

**I'm sorry I had to take such a break from updating but the mood I was in, well the evil would have triumphed over good and Erin would have turned into a completely different and horrible character and I wouldn't have been able to use her ever again. **

**But now things are settling down (fingers crossed) and I have my nice muse back (not the nasty muse that nearly made me kill my characters off) and I will try and get back into writing this story some more**.


	16. Baby Steps

Erin hated hospitals. Currently she was lying on a bed in a cubicle in the accident and emergency department waiting to be discharged. Suddenly the curtain to her cubicle was pulled back and Harry stepped in looking very sympathetic

"I phoned Nikki to give her an update" he told Leo who was sitting next to the bed on a rather uncomfortable looking chair "How's the patient doing?"

Erin grumbled in response and Harry was sure he caught a few questionable four letter words

"The doctor's checked her over" Leo told Harry as the younger man pulled up another chair

"What's the damage?"

"Like you can't see!" Erin snapped, the hospital was making her more grumpy than usual

"She's re-fractured her wrist, dislocated her elbow, and broken her ulna, not to mention three fingers and a thumb.

Harry grimaced as he eyed the bulky cast that covered Erin's arm from her shoulder to her hand and was bent at the elbow. Her fingers were strapped up and the whole ensemble prevented Erin from being able to move her arm

"The doctor thinks she must have packed some real force behind the punch" Leo told Harry "She must have hit the wall a good couple of times to cause that much damage, of course it didn't help her arm was injured to begin with"

"How's her leg?" Harry asked, not being quite sure if he wanted to know

Leo gently moved the covers back from the bed to reveal a cast covering Erin's leg from the thigh downwards

"Badly fractured in several places" he said simply and was met with a groan of frustration from Erin

"So you've managed to break your arm and leg only days after coming through major surgery" Harry said incredulously "You're more accident prone than Nikki!"

"Do you want to tell him what happened?" Leo asked and Erin nodded

"I was trashing my room" she said shakily "And I tipped my bed over, it landed on my leg…" she said meekly

"And you punched the wall…" Harry said and Erin nodded

At that moment the doctor came in, giving all three of them a professional smile "Well Erin I think we can discharge you now. We would usually keep you in overnight but obviously you're in capable hands and I've also been informed of your hatred for hospitals so taking that all into consideration we're going to release you"

"Good" Erin muttered

"I want you to keep off your leg as much as possible" the doctor told her "And I want you to rest your arm as well"

Erin nodded and tried to tune out to what the doctor was saying, she _really_ hated hospitals

* * *

A week later and Erin was still laid up at home. Leo had thought it best that she stay at home and recover, so he'd been on the phone to her teachers to arrange a way to keep up her studies from home. She'd had lots of work sent home and was surprised to find she wasn't that far behind. School work had been hard to do as her writing arm was strapped up in plaster, but Harry, Nikki and Leo were all there to help her and she was starting to make progress

Unfortunately her injuries weren't making as fast progress as her school work was, the broken bones she'd suffered in the past from living with her mother, were slowing down the progress of the fresh fractures recovering. Erin was increasingly frustrated by this but it was Leo who was always there to soothe her and keep her spirits up.

"How's the invalid?" Leo asked walking into the living room

Erin had been sleeping downstairs for the last week as she was unable to get upstairs without risking another fall which Leo was very keen to avoid

"Sore" Erin groaned laying her head back on the pillow

Leo gave her a sympathetic smile as he looked over his daughter, as much as he hated to see her in pain, he did admit this was the longest he'd ever seen her still and it was doing her wonders keeping her patient

"Take these" Leo said handing her a couple of colourful pills which she swallowed down with the help of some water

"How long do I have to stay like this?" she motioned to her casts

"A little while yet" he told her softly "You need to wait for the bones to knit back together again. It's only been a week…"

"I want to go back to school" she pleaded

Leo shook his head "You heard what the doctor said, you're meant to be resting. Don't run before you can walk"

Erin scowled at his poor taste of joke "I can walk though"

"You're meant to be keeping as much weight off as possible" he chided

"Please…" Erin begged "Just to the kitchen and back"

Leo rolled his eyes "And then you promise me you'll rest" Erin nodded

Very carefully the pair of them managed to strap a blue foam shoe around her leg cast and slowly pushing herself up on a crutch and being balanced by Leo, she managed to stand upright. However as soon as she put weight on her injured leg she let out a hiss of pain and started to wobble

"Erin this isn't a good idea" Leo said balancing her

"Please…" Erin said and Leo could to the determined look on her face

Taking little baby steps, Erin tried to get across to the kitchen. The distance had seemed so short when she wasn't injured but now it seemed like a marathon effort

"I can't go on" she wheezed after only half a dozen steps

"Okay" Leo said as he wrapped her arm around his shoulder and she hopped back to her makeshift bed

"That was rubbish" she said as Leo helped her lie back down, un-strapping the shoe from her foot and making sure both her injured limbs were elevated

"It was more than before. Anyway you've got to remember you had major surgery a week ago and your body is still recovering from that. You're not going to be able to push yourself as hard" he told her

Erin just mumbled and sank back down into the pillows just as the doorbell rang

* * *

"Hi Leo" Nikki said as both Harry and herself stepped into the welcoming warmth of Leo's house

"How's Erin?" Harry asked as he took off his jacket

"Still quite weak" Leo said quietly so Erin couldn't hear "The abuse she suffered in the past is really taking its toll on her body's ability to recover"

"She'll make a full recovery though?" Nikki asked

"After she gets the cast off the doctor says she'll have to wear a brace for her arm and leg and she'll be on crutches for a while after" Leo told them "Her leg has been badly broken from when she lived with her mother and it's going to be very weak. And we all know the trauma her wrist has been through"

"Poor kid" Harry sighed

"She'll get there" Nikki assured him

"Of course she will" Leo gave a gentle smile "She's the most stubborn person I know"

* * *

"You have been in the wars" Harry said as the walked into the living room where Erin was

"Ignore him" Nikki said shooting a look at Harry "How are you feeling?"

"Better" Erin said although Nikki didn't believe her for a second, a certain maternal telepathy informed her otherwise

Nikki leant towards Erin and adjusted her pillows

"She shouldn't have to strain her neck like that" Nikki scolded Leo

Harry just rolled his eyes at Leo and mouthed the word 'women'

"And don't think I didn't see that!" Nikki turned to Harry who just held his hands up in defence

"I'm going to make some coffee" Leo said sensing that it was his chance to escape

"I need to make Alice a bottle" Nikki said following him as she took the sleeping infant from Harry "She'll wake up soon"

Harry just chuckled as he heard Nikki launching into full blown maternal mode at Leo and resumed his position besides Erin

"Bad things do happen to me" she sighed wincing as she adjusted her arm

"Not you're just very accident prone" Harry chuckled as Erin scowled at him "How's the school work going?" he said changing the subject quickly

"Slowly" Erin groaned "I can't even do half my art because I can't even move my arm without it hurting"

"It'll get better though" Harry encouraged

"I'm going to have to have physiotherapy after I get my casts off" Erin sighed "And I'm going to have to be on crutches for ages"

"That's only to help you" Harry told her "You'll be up and about before you know it"

"I couldn't even walk to the kitchen today, I got as far as there" Erin pointed only a very short distance away from where she currently was

"You're weak at the moment; you're body needs tine to recover. You'll be able to do it in time but for now you just have to take baby steps"

Erin nodded suddenly feeling very sleepy. The painkillers that she had been prescribed were very strong and soon she drifted off into a deep sleep


	17. Having The Strength

A couple of months later and Erin found herself hobbling out of the outpatients centre on a pair of crutches. Spring had finally sprung and the whole day seemed to reflect Erin's mood

"I'm so glad to have those casts off" she sighed

Leo looked at his daughter and smiled, today the doctor had been happy enough to remove her casts much to Erin's relief. He's supplied her with crutches until she built up the strength again but Leo could already see she was making progress.

"I need to talk to you" he said as they got back to his car

"About what?" Erin said as she niftily manoeuvred herself back into the car

Leo took a deep breath "Nora"

"I don't want to talk about her" Erin said quickly staring hard at her feet

"Erin…" Leo sighed "The case is going to court as you fully well know and they need you to testify"

"I don't want to" Erin scowled "Anyway I thought they'd locked her up"

"She is in prison at the moment awaiting trial but this case will determine her sentence. She needs to be punished for what she did to you"

"Like I could forget" Erin sighed as they pulled out of the hospital car park

"We're going to have to talk to the lawyer for prosecution about it. They need you in court to tell them what happened"

"What if I don't want to" Erin bit her lip

"I'm not going to force you" Leo said quietly "I just want you to think about it"

Erin shrugged and just stared out of the window. Suddenly the lovely spring morning had been tainted by memories of the past and now all she could focus on were the darkening rainclouds bringing spring showers

* * *

The next day Leo finally allowed Erin back into school; although she was glad to go back she couldn't help but feel a little nervous about what was awaiting her there. But she needed something, anything to keep her mind off the rapidly approaching trial that was only weeks away

As she hobbled into her art class she was immediately met by an excited looking Nate who flung his arms around her almost causing her to fall backwards

"I missed you" he told her

"Ditto" she grinned

"Doesn't count" he told her and she stuck her tongue out at him

"Where is everyone?" she asked looking at the low population of the classroom

"School trip" he told her

"Why didn't you go?" Erin asked as she hobbled over to her seat

"I was worried about you; I wanted to be here when you came back"

"You shouldn't put your life on hold for me" Erin scolded

"Yeah well I did" Nate said giving her his trademark lopsided grin "Anyway why didn't you go?"

Erin just motioned to her crutches and the braces with a confused look on her face

"Obviously" he grinned "How long are you on those for"

"Maybe a month of so" she said

"Does it still hurt?"

Erin frowned "A little, my arm and leg are still a little stiff and I still get the occasional twinge but apart from that I'm fine" she assured him, noticing the worry on his face

"Ah Miss Dalton, I heard a rumour you'd be gracing us with your presence today" Erin turned around to see Mr Peters walking into the classroom "Everyone carry on with what you were doing" he told the class as he walked over to where Erin was sat "How are you?"

"Fine" Erin said as she put her crutches to one side

"How have you been getting on with your work?"

The good mood Erin was in suddenly disappeared as she showed Mr Peters her sketchbook

Ad the teacher flicked the pages over he noticed that this was different to Erin's usual work. The lines weren't as clear cut and everything seemed to be out of focus

"It's rubbish" she said hanging her head

Mr Peters shook his head as he gazed at her work some more, although it wasn't up to her usual standards, he had to admit there still was a certain charm about her art

"I had to do it with my non-writing hand" she explained

"It's not bad Erin" he told the young girl "Not bad at all…"

"It is!" the sketchbook was snapped shut

"Now Erin…" the teacher warned "You know these things take time…"

Erin nodded sulkily and listened to the teacher as he filled her in on what she had missed

* * *

Harry bounded up to Leo's office with a case file in his hand and knocked on the door softly. Poking his head into the room he saw Leo was on the phone deep in conversation

"She seems very reluctant to talk about it" he heard Leo say

There was a pause as Leo listened intently to the speaker on the other end of the phone

"Of course I understand, but you must understand she's not one to open up to strangers easily"

Leo rubbed at his temples with his free hand as he scribbled a note down on a nearby piece of paper

"Alright then" the older man said reluctantly "Six o'clock this evening will be fine. Goodbye" he hung up the phone and turned towards Harry was finally stepped into the room

"I've finished the report on the overdose victim we had in a while ago" the file was place down on the increasing stack that seemed to permanently remain on Leo's desk

"Thanks" Leo said sounding distracted

"I was thinking of taking an early lunch…" Harry continued, tentatively addressing the issue

"Whatever you want"

"…And a pay rise wouldn't go a miss either…" Leo's head shot up and Harry chuckled "Kidding Leo, I was seeing what it took to get your attention"

"Sorry" the older man sighed

"Who was that on the phone?" Harry asked settling himself down on a nearby chair

"Edward Adams, he's the prosecution for Nora's case"

"Is the case coming up soon?"

"A matter of weeks" Leo grimaced

"I'm guessing Erin's not too happy about that"

Leo nodded "I did try and mention it to her but she's closed off. This lawyer is keen to get her to stand up in court as a witness but she's terrified"

"Is it a necessity to have Erin there?" Harry asked "The court must know what she's been through"

"Apparently there's a good chance that Nora will plead not guilty to the charges. When she was taken in to police custody they found vast amounts of drugs and alcohol in her system. The defence might try and get her off on account she was not in control of what she was doing"

Harry snorted in disgust "That woman nearly killed Erin; they need to lock her up and throw away the key"

"I agree…" Leo assured him "…But Erin seems petrified by the idea of going through it all again. Edward is coming over tonight to try and build up a rapport with Erin before the case goes to court. I just don't know if Erin is strong enough to go through all this again"

* * *

Nikki sat in her car idly drumming her fingers on the steering wheel as she waited for Erin to be dismissed from school. In the back seat Alice was strapped into her carrier and was singing a happy little song to herself of her own creation. Moments later Nikki saw Erin hobble out of school looking utterly exhausted, the girl made her way over to the car with a confused expression on her face

"I can walk home" Erin said firmly, leaning on her crutches

Nikki shook her head "Get in the car"

Erin sighed knowing when she was beaten and slipped into the front passenger seat beside Nikki

"Erin!" Alice squealed happily as the young girl did up her seatbelt

Erin smiled and reached back to tickle Alice in the ribs which made the girl laugh harder

"How was school?" Nikki said as the pulled away from the gates

"Tiring" Erin said leaning back against the headrest "Did Leo send you to pick me up?"

Nikki snorted "Leo has no idea about parenting. He might think it's alright for you to walk home after what you've been through but I on the other hand have your general well being at heart. He knows that you need to take things easy and not be pushing yourself too hard, too soon" Nikki said launching into a full blown evaluation of Leo's parenting skills

"Yes mother…" Erin said sarcastically and rolled her eyes

Nikki glanced on her with a shocked expression on her face

"I didn't mean…I'm sorry…" Erin stuttered

"No, its fine" Nikki smiled

"Do you think its odd that I never really called my own biological mother 'mum' to her face?" she pondered

Nikki shook her head "There's more to being a mother than just giving birth" she told the girl

Erin shrugged and stared out of the window

"And just for the record, if my little one grows up to be anything like you than I'll be proud" she said giving Erin's hand a squeeze.


	18. In Her Own Little Way

Erin watched the clock hands tick closer to six o'clock with a sickening feeling in her stomach. She had given up on reading a few hours ago, the words just seemed to blur into a jumble of meaningless squiggles on the page.

"Erin?" she looked up to see Leo's concerned face staring back at her

"I'm fine" she replied to his silent question

Leo looked doubtful but was stopped from taking the issue further by a knock on the door. Erin knew that not only did it signify the arrival Edward Adams but it signified the reopening of the past events she had been desperately trying to bury.

Moments later a tall, grey haired man followed Leo into the living room. Erin immediately tensed at the arrival of the stranger and wrinkled her nose as she took him in. He was dressed in a grey suit that just seemed to sum his whole personality up in one word: bland. He saw Erin huddled up in one of the chairs and gave her a false smile; it didn't communicate any of the happiness she saw when Nikki, Harry or Leo smiled. It was just the smile people force onto their faces to be polite. It held no emotional warmth for Erin and she would have just preferred it if he hadn't smiled at all.

"You must be Erin" he said extending his hand to her

Erin froze; her body language was screaming that she was uncomfortable around this man only within a few moments of him appearing in her life. Like a young child she held her hand behind her back and refused to shake hands with him.

Edward was undeterred by this, he cleared his throat and began again "Erin my name is Edward Adams and I'm the lawyer for prosecution for the case against Nora Jones"

Erin mumbled something in response that only Leo, who was in-tune with her moods and expressions, could pick up

"Pardon?" Edward questioned

"She doesn't like her godmother's name being mentioned" Leo translated for Edward

"Oh of course" Edward gave her another one of his empty smiles "I understand"

But both Erin and Leo knew that he didn't.

"I'm sure you have been informed of the upcoming trial of your godmother. The case is going to court in less than a couple of weeks and the case has called on you as a witness"

Erin didn't like the way he spoke. His words were just technical jargon; there was no expression or feeling behind them. Edward Adams was just simply a walking law textbook.

"Anyway" Edward continued, not noticing that Erin's attention was waning and she was making the transition into the world that was contained in her head "I think it would be helpful if the whole procedure was explained to you…"

But Erin was a million miles away now; her mind had flown away from the dull drivel that was gushing at a constant, never-ending rate from Edward's mouth. She retreated back into her own little world where nothing could harm her. Currently she was reliving the conversations between Elizabeth Bennet and Mr Darcy as they took a walk around Pemberley. Erin was much happier roaming Austen's microcosm and eighteenth century England than she was listening to the incredibly dull legal spiel that was being aimed at the small part of her mind that remained in the real world. She was perfectly content in her fantasy world when a voice drew her out of her little world and dragged her back to earth with a bump

"Erin?" she heard Leo's voice calling

With a great reluctance she pulled herself back into the bland world of reality as the colours and images of her fantasy world melted into the grey and dismal dreariness that summed up her reluctant reality.

"Hmm?"

"Mr Adams asked if you had any questions"

"Oh" Erin said realising that Edward was staring at her. It was then she noticed that his eyes were a dreary shade of grey just like the rest of him "No I don't have any questions"

Edward nodded and stood up "I'll be in touch" he nodded to Erin as Leo led him back to the front door

But there was no response from Erin as she was already back in her fantasy world, seeing if it had sustained any damage from the unexpected interruption that had made it's way into her private thoughts.

She was later most pleased to report that it hadn't

* * *

The next day Leo and Harry were working on the latest 'John Doe' to have the pleasure of joining them at the morgue.

Harry, with a handful of small intestine, turned to Leo after a short silence "How did Erin take the visit from the lawyer last night?"

"She wasn't listening to him at all" Leo smiled "She drifted off into her own little world within about five minutes of him being there"

Harry snorted with laughter as he put the intestines on the scale to be weighed

"I don't blame her to be honest" Leo admitted "Lectures on law are tedious at the best of times"

"Do you think she's coping?" Harry asked, delving back into the chest cavity again

Leo paused for a moment "She's trying to block everything out and just move on. Many would argue that doing such a thing wouldn't constitute as evidence for coping. But I know Erin, or at least I think I do, and I know that she's working things out in her own little way"

Harry nodded as he hand came back out of the chest cavity "Are you still coming over for dinner tonight?"

Leo made a noise of affirmation

"Is Janet coming as well?" Harry asked and he was sure he saw a blush creep into Leo's face

"Yes" his voice didn't betray anything "She's coming after work"

"Erin will already be there when we get there" Harry told him "Nikki picked her up from school"

"She didn't need to do that" Leo protested

"She wanted to" Harry told him "And you know as well as I do that you do not argue with Nikki when she's made up her mind on something"

Leo chuckled and Harry could have sworn he heard the words 'under the thumb'

* * *

"Erin?" a voice called with pulled Erin out of her deepest thoughts

"Sorry?" she said, realising that Nikki had been trying to get her attention for quite a while

"You were a million miles away" Nikki shook her head "I asked whether you could come and help me lay the table"

"Sure" Erin said struggling to her feet and slipping her arms into the crutches

Nikki watched Erin closely as she made her way over to the dining area. She could see the struggle Erin was going through and knew immediately that her injuries were taking more out of her than Erin cared to admit

"Erin sit down" Nikki sighed knowing that Erin was in no state to be of help to her

Erin grimaced slightly as she lowered herself into a chair Nikki had pulled out for her.

"How's you leg?" Nikki asked

Erin pulled a face

"Is it still giving you pain?" the concern was evident on Nikki's face

"A little" Erin admitted

"How's your wrist?"

"A little stiff but not as bad" Erin smiled but Nikki wasn't convinced.

Just like Leo, Nikki knew that Erin still had a long way to go. She wasn't coping with things like everybody else would do but they knew not to measure Erin's mood by society's standards. They both knew the strain Erin had been through and maybe was wasn't back to normal but they knew Erin well enough to know that she was coping in her own little way even if they couldn't fully understand what those little ways were.

**Author's note: Sorry for the lack of updates. Things have been crazy busy at the moment.**


	19. Coming To A Decision

The kitchen was filled with a lovely comfortable, cosy atmosphere. Erin was filled with dread and worry. The two didn't go well and already Nikki had noticed there was something wrong with Erin and had asked her about it

Erin had just shrugged in response

"You're worried about meeting Janet aren't you?" Nikki said

"Stop with telepathy" Nikki knew she was right

"Bit you know Janet; you've met her and gotten on well with her"

"I'm just not very confident around strangers at the moment" Erin mumbled

"But she's not a stranger; you've been introduced to her before"

Everyone is a stranger" Erin told her bluntly "There's just a variety of levels"

Nikki chose to leave it there and moved the conversation to a safer topic, namely what sauce she should make to accompany the meal

* * *

When Leo and Harry finally got in, Nikki was so concerned about Erin that she took Leo to one side

"How much does Janet know about what happened?" she asked

"A little" Leo admitted "She knew that Erin had been in hospital and I gave her the briefest of outlines to why"

"Erin's very unsettled about tonight" Nikki told him

"I know" Leo's reply was reluctant "But she cant hide away from the world forever"

* * *

"What?" Harry exclaimed, hardly able to believe what he was hearing

He was sitting in a chair opposite Erin who was talking to him whilst balancing a gurgling Alice on his knee who was accompanying their conversation with an original composition of hers

"I don't like Janet" Erin said bluntly

"When exactly did you come to this conclusion?"

Erin shrugged "She is a stranger"

Harry sighed "Janet is not like Nora. Erin, you know she isn't, this is just you be irrational"

"I'm not irrational" Erin half shouted

"Erin!" Leo's voice drifted in from the kitchen where he was helping Nikki "There's no need to shout"

Erin mumbled an apology and went back to brooding

"You can get past this you know" Harry told her as he set Alice down on the floor

"No I cant" Erin said "She's still there every time I close my eyes. She's the last thing I think about before going to bed and the first thing I think about when I wake up in the morning"

"It will take time" he told her "Have you spoken to Dan Williams about this?" he asked her, referring to Erin psychologist

She shook her head "Not since she put me in hospital"

"Maybe you should"

Erin shrugged and Harry knew not to push the matter any further

Suddenly lots of things happened at once. The doorbell rang, Erin froze and Alice started to cry. These responses weren't a particularly good omen to the dinner that was about to be undertaken

* * *

"Hi Janet" Nikki greeted to woman as she stepped through the doorway

Janet had been greeted warmly by Harry and Nikki. Even more warmly by Leo. But coldly by Erin who hadn't even looked at the new arrival

"Hello Erin…" Janet tried again

But Erin continued to stare at a section of wall like no one had even tried to get her attention. Loaded looks were passed between the three pathologists but still Erin said nothing

"I'm just about to serve dinner" Nikki said

"Are you coming Erin?" Harry called as he scooped Alice up

She made no response

"We'll be in, in a minute" Leo told then

The room cleared leaving just Leo and Erin behind

"Erin" Leo said standing in front of her

She slowly looked at him

"Nikki is just going to serve dinner now. Please come to the table"

"I'm not hungry" the response was short and blunt

"She's gone to a lot of effort"

"I'm not hungry" she repeated

"Erin" Leo said very calmly "We've talked about your attitude and behaviour before. Now Nikki has gone to a lot of effort and I would like you to come to the table now"

Wordlessly Erin got to her feet and limped over to the kitchen to join the rest of the group.

* * *

It was quite incredible how one silent member could make a dinner so awkward. Erin said nothing and just stared at her plate only prompted into movement by Leo. She refused to be drawn into conversation and just sat there like a ghost not making any conversation to it but still making an impact. Her silence spoke volumes

Something had changed in Erin since the meeting with Nora. It had brought up the old feelings she had tried to bury. She was feeling restless and trapped again. Erin needed to be free. She didn't want to stay anymore, she didn't want to talk to a psychologists. The time for talking was over; words could not keep her sanctuary in tact. Nothing could. The walls had been broken down and obliterated into shards and shards of tiny fragments.

She had tried to run away from her past but each time she built as new sanctuary, she could only watch it be destroyed. Every time she thought she was coping, another moment would flash past and she would be right back to misery. She wasn't coping though she pretended she was. Even her imaginary worlds couldn't keep her safe; images of Nora and her mother plagued her little world. She could never be free. The only thing she could do was keep moving away from the past, trying to keep one step ahead of its shadowy grasp. She knew what she had to do

Erin was going to leave.


	20. Rule Number One

It was midnight before Erin finally put her plan into action. The house had fallen silent a few hours ago and she could hear Leo's gentle breathing from across the hall. She padded down the stairs and slipped out of the front door. Erin didn't look back. That was rule number one; don't look back no matter how much it hurts

The street was so quiet and still. Erin started to pick up her pace as the cold started to set in. She shivered in the cold air, she'd forgotten just how cold nights could be. Erin was starting to wish she'd put another jumper on, all she was wearing was a thin t-shirt and jeans covered by a threadbare hooded jacket. She was starting to wish she hadn't left at all but Erin knew she had passed the point of no return and there was no going back now.

* * *

Leo felt his heat sink as soon as he saw the folded piece of paper propped up against the fruit bowl. If Erin not rising early and bright like she usually did, hadn't confirmed his fears then this certainly had. With a heavy sorrow weighing upon his mind he shakily unfolded the paper and squinted at Erin's loopy handwriting

_Dear Leo,_

_By the time you read this I will be long gone. Oh that sounded dreadfully clichéd…I suppose I'm struggling to explain myself properly and have resorted to stereotypes and platitudes. I thought angst was meant to spur on creativity not stop it. _

_But I'm just deviating from the real crux of the matter. I don't know how I can ever explain how I'm feeling right now and I doubt you'll ever be able to understand it. Leo, as much as it pains me to do this I have to go. _

_Do you remember the day we first met? You told me then that I was in charge of my situation and only I could decide where to go. I shall always remember that day fondly and you were right. I am in charge of my life and now I have made a decision. I can't stay here any longer. No matter how high you build walls to protect me, something will always come crashing in. My present is haunted by my past. I cannot see a future, only echoes and memories of a past life which I have tried to get away from. _

_The last safe place has been destroyed. My sanctuary is no more. I have to move on. I don't know if you will ever understand this. Please don't blame yourself; this is my decision and my decision only. _

_Please don't look for me because I won't let you find me _

_Love_

_Erin xxxx_

_PS. Tell Harry and Nikki that I'm sorry_

_PPS. I love you even if i never showed it_

* * *

When Erin opened her eyes she had a sinking feeling it was not going to be a good day. She was soaked from the night's downpour; she was lying in a patch of mud and had a rather sharp stick poking her back. As she stumbled to her feet and crawled out from the undergrowth where she had been hiding, she took stock of her current situation.

She had been on the streets for three days, five hours and thirty-three minutes. At least that was as best as she could calculate, time was rather relative when you only have the sun and moon to judge by. Erin was soaked right down to the skin and her stomach screamed angrily for food. The cold had set into her joints and her injured leg was really starting to ache.

Currently she was sitting in the undergrowth next to a main road. She wasn't quite sure where she was but she wanted to keep out of the way of the public. It was instinctive to her now; the rules and regulations she had learnt the first time she was sleeping rough had come flooding back to her rather quickly. Dusting herself off, but only managing to smear the mud further across her jeans, Erin made her way onwards. She didn't look back. She never looked back. That was rule number one: Don't look back no matter how much it hurts

* * *

Harry Cunningham pulled up in the car park early one morning with only one thought on his mind: Erin. She had been missing for nearly two weeks now and despite numerous police campaigns there was no sign of her. The three pathologists weren't surprised; Erin clearly didn't want to be found.

Leo had been hit the hardest. He would just wander about with a horrible lost look in his eyes. He was trying to deal with things the best he could but Harry could see the strain was taking its toll on the young man. Everyone was feeling Erin's departure, even little Alice who didn't quite understand what was going on, was miserable. Nikki said that the young absorbed things more quickly than they were able to put words of meaning to the situation.

Harry got out of the car and trudged towards the lab. Suddenly out of the corner of his eyes he saw a dark lump lying in the corner. The lump wasn't moving but as Harry stared at it for longer he could make out the form of a human. He moved over slowly to the form with an air of caution. He crouched down in front of it but the form didn't move, clearly it hadn't noticed his arrival

* * *

Erin had been wondering around without meaning or direction. She wasn't in a good state by anyone's standards. Her hair was lank and lifeless, a look that was reflected in her pale eyes. The weight had dropped off her and she was back to her stick thing frame. Her joints were frozen stiff and her leg ached with a pain Erin hadn't felt in a long time. She felt weak and frail.

Erin had tried to go on but her body didn't have the energy and her mind was soon following. She had no idea where she was and the last thing she remembered was the darkness setting in around her and she quite frankly welcomed it.

Someone was shaking Erin. She tried to open her eyes but it was just too hard. They were calling her name now but they sounded far and distant. They were persistent in their task much to Erin's annoyance. Finally Erin gave in and turned over. She broke rule number one.

Erin looked back.


	21. Finding Erin

When Harry turned over the figure in the car park, it took him a moment to realise who it was. The body was thin to the point of malnourishment and cold under the touch of his hand. Bruises and cuts splayed across the face and almost concealed the identity of the person. However, Harry recognised the familiar thin t-shirt and jeans and he could just recognise the person under the disguise of injury

"Erin?" he called loudly "Can you hear me?" he tried to get her attention but the girl was unresponsive

Searching for Erin's pulse, he felt a familiar feeling of nausea rise in his throat as he looked for the throbbing that would show she was still with him.

"Go away" the voice was quiet and devoid of emotion

"Erin?" Harry said leaning over the girl, and sure enough, a pair of pale irises looked up at him

"Go away" she repeated

"No" Harry said firmly "I'm going to get you inside and then I'm calling Leo"

Erin's eyes held a flicker of defiance for just a moment but then the exhaustion set in and it was lost once more. Harry shrugged off his jacket and wrapped it around Erin, noting that although it dwarfed her in size it would keep her warm

"Can you stand?" he asked knowing that he had to get her inside soon

The girl gently tried to push herself into a standing position, her muscles went into spasm and a look of pain ripped into her dulcet features. Clearly, she was too weak to walk the short distance to the lab so Harry scooped her up into his arms, appalled at how light she was, and slowly carried the freezing girl into the warmth of the lab. Erin made whimpers of pain as Harry jolted her stiff limbs but he knew he had to get her warm soon. Even wrapped in his long coat, he could still feel how freezing her body was and that her heart rate was slowing down

"Good morning Doctor Cunnin…" Charlie's morning greeting was rapidly halted when she saw Harry "Is that Erin?"

Harry nodded "Charlie, I need you to get me some blankets and some dry scrubs for her to put on" his voice screamed urgency "And you need to phone Professor Dalton immediately"

"On it" Charlie called dashing into the lab

It was then that Harry noticed that Erin was silently crying, "It's okay" he soothed her "You're going to be just fine"

As soon as he walked into the lab he felt the warmth seep into both of them. He set her down on one of the sofa and set about trying to get her changed into the dry scrubs that Charlie had provided. Luckily, the lab was empty and although Erin did not seem to care much about how she was, they at least had some privacy

"I found some blankets," Charlie said passing the thick woolly fabric to Harry who nodded his thanks

Carefully he wrapped the fragile girl into the blankets. Erin wailed when he tried to straighten out her limbs but soon they got her wrapped up and settled on the sofa

"I'll be right back" he told Erin and signalled to Charlie to keep an eye on the girl. He didn't think Erin would try leave, he didn't think she had the strength, but then again Erin seemed to do a lot of things that defied logic and he wasn't taking any chances.

He punched the familiar digits into his phone and pleaded the recipient would pick up

"_Harry?"_ Nikki's voice rang into his ear

"I've found Erin"

"_What? Where? Is she alright?"_

"She's not great but she's alive," Harry told her

"_Have you called Leo?" _

"We're trying to get through to him now"

"_I'm coming down right away"_

"Nikki…" Harry began but she had already rung off and he knew better than to argue with his wife in a situation like this

"How're you feeling now?" Harry came over to the girl who was huddled in a couple of thick blankets he had found lying about in the lab

"Go away" the reply was the same as it had ever been since he had found her

"Can I check your pulse?"

Taking her silence as a sign of consent Harry gently removed one of her hands from the blanket and took her pulse. He was pleased to calculate that it was faster than when he last took it and there was now a bit more warmth in her hands than there had previously been. He returned her arm to her and pulled the blanket closer to her to keep her warm

"I still can't get through to Professor Dalton," Charlie said coming into the room. "He's probably still at a crime scene or driving" Harry nodded to Charlie to reassure the lab technician

"At least we know this one's safe" Charlie smiled at Erin who had chosen to remain her stoic self "I'll get you a hot drink Erin"

"Thanks Charlie" Harry said on behalf of the young girl

With Charlie out of the room Harry turned back to Erin who had now chosen to curl up on the sofa he had put her on

"Do you still ache?" he asked her remembering how stiff and cold she had been when he had found her

The reply was mumbled but Harry could pick out the word 'hurts' and he gave her a sympathetic smile

"You'll warm up soon and then they'll hurt less," he told her "Give it some time and you'll be fine"

There was another muffled response but it was inaudible to the pathologist

"Leo will be here soon" he assured her

This time the reply was clear-cut and it shook Harry right to the core

"I don't want Leo…"

* * *

Nothing could have prepared Leo for what he saw when he stepped into the lab that morning. He'd been caught up at a particularly gory crime scene since the early hours of the morning and had not had a chance to return any of the calls from the lab. He had figured it was nothing more than a reminder about a coroners meeting or someone looking for a misplaced file so when he walked into the lab and saw a stressed looking Harry crouched in front of what looked like a pile of blankets, he was concerned

"Harry?" Leo called to the young man who at once looked up and seemed relieved to see him

Leo walked over to the pile of blankets, peered into the depths, and was just able to make out a body wrapped in the core. As he watched the figure closer he felt his blood run cold as he realised who it was

"Erin…" he said sounding utterly astonished

The figure squealed in distress and buried herself deeper into the blanket burrow

"I found her in the car park this morning," Harry said quietly, all the while trying to soothe the anguished Erin

"She does seem to have an aptitude for ending up there" Leo joked weakly but Harry could see the strain on his face

By now Erin was making high pitched wailing noises and was writhing around in the blankets

"Ssh…" Harry soothed the girl "Erin, Leo just wants to talk to you"

Very slowly, a face appeared from the depths of the burrow. Leo winced as he saw how gaunt and pale the face dappled with bruises was. His beautiful girl had been reduced to skin, bones and broken blood vessels. He was sure he could have pinpointed the moment his heart broke into a million shards.

"Hello" he said taking Harry's place and crouching down in front of her "How are you?"

He knew it was a stupid question to ask but he didn't know how else to start the conversation and as he had guessed, Erin didn't reply

"Have you called the police?" he asked the younger man

"I'll do it now," Harry said giving the two some time alone

"It's okay you're not in trouble," Leo said noticing how Erin had stiffened at the mention of the police "We just need to let them know you're okay"

"Leo?" a voice called and he turned round to see Nikki rushing into the lab with Alice held closely to her

"Nikki, how?"

"Harry called me" she said crouching down in front of Erin "Oh Erin…" she sighed

Alice let out a happy gurgle when she saw Erin and gently patted her on the face

"I've called the police" Harry said coming back to the group "And they're very happy you're okay Erin," he said

"Do they want to talk to her?" Leo asked quietly and Harry nodded

"But they don't want to rush it; they don't want to spook her into running away again, so they're giving us some space first"

A small sob from Erin drew their attention back to the small girl

"It's going to be alright Erin," Leo said

Alice, seeing that Erin was crying, started to grizzle as well and Nikki took her away for a moment to calm the infant down

"She missed you" Leo told them young girl "We all did, we were very worried about you"

Erin slowly moved her hand out of the blankets and slipped it into Leo's hand. It was a simple, silent gesture but it spoke volumes.

**Author's note: Sorry for le short chapter but I am snowed under with revision and coursework at the moment**


	22. Time To Face The Change

A few hours later and Erin had finally succumbed to the exhaustion and was curled up under the mass of blankets. Leo had not left her side, he did not think he could or would ever leave her side again

"Leo?" a voice came and he looked up to see Harry there with a concerned look on his face "You should take a break"

Leo shook his head "I'm not leaving her" the reply was firm and definite

Harry was undeterred "You look almost as exhausted as she does. Go and get yourself a drink or something. Do you really want her to wake up and see you in this state?"

Leo sighed knowing he was beaten. He gingerly pushed himself up off the sofa, where he had been sitting next to Erin. When he was finally in his office and out of earshot Harry turned to the sleeping Erin

"I know you're awake," he said quietly "So you can stop pretending now"

A pair of pale eyes flickered open and stared at him defiantly

Harry chuckled "I can't believe you sat still for so long" he said incredulously

Erin shrugged but shifted her position so Harry could sit down next to her

"So do you want to tell me why you were pretending to be asleep?" he asked gently

"I can't talk to him…" the reply was whispered

"Leo?" Harry asked and Erin nodded in conformation

"I hurt him so much, I've hurt all of you, I didn't mean…."

Harry cut her off swiftly "I know" he smiled at her "Leo's not cross with you, he's just glad you're back safe and sound"

Erin nodded and pulled the blankets closer around her

"Still feeling cold?" he asked placing his hand on her forehead, her skin felt warmer than it had earlier that morning but Harry knew they had to keep her core temperate at a suitable level

"Harry…" Erin said suddenly after a moments silence "What happened about the Nora's trial?"

Harry paused and didn't speak for a while "You don't need to worry about that now" he said quietly

"But what happened?" Erin said alarmed at the change in Harry's mood

The pathologist sighed knowing he wasn't going to get out of this one "The trial went ahead without you Erin" he said slowly "When they were sure your disappearance was of your own accord they decided to go on without you"

"What was the verdict?" Erin asked, feeling a pit of nausea rise in her stomach

"Erin I don't think we should be really talking about this now"

Her stomach was churning now

"I want to know," she said slowly

"Without your evidence, they found her…" Harry paused hating himself for revealing the next two words "…Not guilty"

Erin would have screamed at that moment but the minute she opened her mouth, the bile rose up her throat and she was violently sick on the floor

* * *

"Leo's taken Erin home" Nikki said sliding her arm around her husband's waist

"I shouldn't have said anything," Harry muttered

"She would have found out sooner or later" Nikki said gently and pressed a kiss on top of Harry's mop of dark hair

"She didn't need to find out that soon though"

"It's probably best that she knows now" Nikki said "At least she knows where she stands now and there are no secrets so she can start fresh"

"Can she though?" Harry asked already knowing that his and Nikki's answer would be of the same.

* * *

When Erin next opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Leo sitting on the chair next to her. She gave him a tired smile and pushed herself up in the bed and looked around the room

"I had it redecorated" Leo told her "I hope you don't mind"

Erin glanced around the room taking in the freshly painted walls and new furniture. She also noticed she was in a new bed, since the incident with the old one but her old soft toy dog was propped up next to her giving the bed an already familiar feel despite its newness

"How did I get here?" she asked

"You fell asleep in the car" Leo told her "I carried you in" he internally shuddered as he remembered how light Erin felt and had resolved to make sure she got back to a healthy weight sooner rather than later

"When can I go back to school?"

Leo sighed, "Don't walk before you can run Erin. Anyway, it's the half term holiday so you've got no choice but to stay here and get better"

Erin just shrugged and nestled back down under the covers, clearly she hadn't regained enough strength to argue back, something Leo was grateful for

"How are you feeling now?"

"Rubbish" she said pulling the duvet closer to her frail body

"I've called the Doctor in to check you over" Leo told her

"Why can't you do it?" she whined

"Because it's a while since I had a patient who's alive and I want a second opinion. You've not got enough strength to get down to the doctor's surgery so he's coming here," Leo said firmly

Erin just shrugged and shuffled in the bed. The tiredness was back again and this time she fully welcomed it

* * *

A few hours later, the doctor had been and gone much to Erin's relief and she had resumed the activity of the day: sleeping. Leo had taken leave down to the kitchen and was currently in the process of making dinner

"So what did the doctor say?"

Leo turned around to face the woman sitting at his table "She's going to be fine"

"Leo…" the voice chided

The older man looked at Janet and knew that she wasn't going to take no for an answer "She's quite weak at the moment but that's understandable. Her body temperature is just about fine now and the cuts and bruises should clear up in a few days"

"How's her leg?" Janet asked

"Not as bad as it could have been" Leo said looking relieved "But she's set back her recovery time by quite a bit"

"At least she's back home now"

"Back where she belongs," Leo said firmly

"So she knows about Nora?"

Leo nodded "I did try and explain that Nora isn't allowed to come anywhere near her but I don't think it's helped all that much. She needed to see Nora locked up for good"

"Give her some time, it's a lot for her to take in" Janet told him "Have you told her about us yet?"

Leo shook his head "I was going to mention it over dinner if she's up to coming down here"

"Time to face the music then" Janet smiled but Leo noticed the lines of concern in her face

* * *

"Do I really need all these layers?" Erin moaned as Leo made her put another warm top on

"Just like the other five times you asked me, the answer is yes" Leo replied

When Leo had gone to check on Erin the two of them had decided that she had just enough strength to make it downstairs. Shakily she had managed to get out of bed and adorn herself with the contents of her wardrobe as directed by Leo.

"Oh no…" Erin sighed as she spotted something in the corner

"You heard what the doctor said" Leo said passing her a pair of crutches, "You're meant to be keeping weight off that leg"

Erin mumbled something Leo was sure he was glad he was unable to hear but she slipped her arms into the crutches and slowly started to make her way out of her bedroom and downstairs. The whole journey took a long time since Erin was still quite weak and her joints hadn't quite unfrozen yet but eventually, with a number of stops along the way, they made it downstairs.

"What are those?" Erin said suddenly pointing to a pair of shoes near the door

"Those are shows Erin, you put them on your feet" Leo told her but Erin frowned at him

"Those are ladies shoes" she said slowly as she pieced it together "But I'm the only girl in the house and those aren't my shoes…"

"There's something I want to talk to you about" Leo said realising he would have to tell Erin sooner rather than later, "Janet and I have decided to move in together"

It came as such a shock to Erin that she nearly fell over "What?" she exclaimed

"Janet and I have moved our relationship on" Leo told her slowly "We've decided to move in together"

"Here?" Leo nodded

"Please Erin…" he began

The young girl just shuffled about on her crutches but didn't' reply for quite a while "It's okay…" she said at last

"Really?" Leo said apprehensively

Erin nodded "You were lonely when I was gone and I guess it makes sense that you wanted some company"

"So you're fine with the idea then?"

Erin sighed, "I'm not fine with it but I think I can get used to it"

"That's all I ask" Leo said gently guiding her into the kitchen where this new family would come together for the first time


	23. Don't ever apologise

A week later Erin was back in school, joining her fellow classmates for the new half term. As usual, the gossip surrounding her was flowing thick and fast but Erin just tried her best to ignore it. Nate hadn't left her side since she'd arrived in school that morning, something Erin was secretly grateful for. Currently they were sitting in the playground at lunchtime, in a deserted corner so Erin didn't have to deal with all the callous whispers about her

"You've barely eaten anything" Nate commented as he stared down at her untouched lunch

"Not hungry…" Erin murmured flicking a piece of hair out of her eyes

"You should eat something" Nate said, he had noticed how much weight Erin had lost when she was away and it worried him

"You're worse than Leo" Erin scowled at him

"I'll take that as a compliment" Nate flashed one of his lop-sided grins at Erin that he knew would always make her smile

She took a bite out of her sandwich and swallowed hard "Happy?" she asked

"Ecstatic" Nate replied "Borderline eudemonic"

"Borderline prat more like" Erin muttered

"There's no borderline about it" Nate grinned and Erin stifled a giggle "Was that a smile?" he pressed

She looked at him and despite her attempts to keep up her stoicism, she was soon laughing alongside him

"Come on we've got to go to biology," Nate said as the school bell drowned out their giggles

Erin sighed and slung her school bag over her shoulder and made her way slowly towards the science block

"Aren't you meant to be using crutches?" Nate asked when he noticed Erin was walking with a slight limp

Erin sighed loudly "Again with the Leo!"

"I'm only looking out for you," Nate told her

"Just like everyone else" Erin said quietly

"You know if you let someone in now and again it would do wonders" Nate retorted

Erin stopped suddenly and rounded on Nate "Do you really want to know what's going on in my life?" her voice was raised to a shout now

"Yes" Nate said firmly, holding her defiant gaze

"You really want to know how my mum beat me every single day. You want to know what it feels like to have your bones snapped by the woman who gave you life. You want to know about how my mum stood by and watched a complete stranger rape me. You want to know what it feels like to live out on the streets for months at a time. You want to know what it finally feels like to have a family only to have it ripped out from under your feet, You want to know how it feels to be beaten within an inch of your life by someone you thought had stayed firmly in your past and then find out that justice wont be served…." Erin's voice had risen to a scream now and had attracted the attention of most of the pupils passing by in the corridor

"I told you she was a nut case," a girl from her biology class whispered to a friend as she walked pass.

Unfortunately Erin had heard that comment and that was all it took for her to burst into a stream of noisy tears in the middle of the bustling corridor. Nate tried his best to console her but his attempts just made her cry harder

"Erin?" a voice came and she turned around to see her art teacher, Mr Peters, standing there looking very concerned "Do you want to come with me for a little chat?"

"No…" Erin shook her head wiping some tears away

"It's okay Erin, you're not in trouble" the teacher assured her "And I'm sure your next teacher will excuse you from class for a bit"

Erin knew she had been backed into a corner and nodded her head

"Right do you and Nate want to come to my office then?"

Erin looked at Nate who grabbed hold of her hand and gave it a tight squeeze before they followed the teacher away from the bustling crowds and into the quiet office

"Right then" he said offering the teenagers a seat "What's been going on to make you so upset"

"Nothing" Erin said quietly, staring at her feet

"Come on Erin, there must have been something that made you have that dramatic outburst in the corridor"

"I can't go back to normal," Erin said after a pause "I can't pretend everything's okay when it's not"

"No one expects you to" Mr Peters said placing a box of tissues in her lap, "I understand you've been through an awful lot in your life…"

"It's just not getting better" Erin sobbed and she leant into Nate so she was sobbing into his shoulder "My whole sanctuary has been destroyed"

"It'll be okay," Nate said quietly

"No it wont!" the reply came "Nora's still out there, she can still get to me…"

"Nora's your godmother yes?" the teacher asked and Erin nodded

"You told me she had a restraining order so she couldn't come near you" Nate frowned

"Like that will stop her" Erin said wiping her eyes "I should have never listened to her, I just wanted to know…" Erin shook her head as her sentence trailed off

"Erin?" the teacher prompted

"My dad" Erin said quietly and Nate held her tighter

She slipped a hand into her blazer pocket and held out a tattered photograph which Mr Peters took gently

"So this has obviously upset you along with everyone else" the teacher said as her carefully studied the picture "And I know it's a lot to deal with when you're just a teenager but you can get through this Erin. You just need to open up to people and let them know what is going on in your world. They just want to help you…"

"I want to help you," Nate whispered in Erin's ear and she bit her tongue to stop a fresh wave of tears

"No one wants to see you upset" Mr Peters told her handing back the photograph "And I understand how hard things must be for you given everything that has happened but you're not alone Erin. You have so many people around you who want to help you but you just have to talk to them"

"It's so hard though"

"I know it is" the teacher sympathised "But you just have to keep trying and keep remembering all the good things"

"You sound like Harry" Erin let out a watery chuckle

"Maybe you should listen to him" Mr Peters smiled as he saw Erin start to calm down "Now listen Erin, my office door is open any time you want to have a chat but promise me you will talk to other people

Erin nodded

"Right now you two can either go back to class or I can inform your teacher of what's happened if you don't feel up to going back"

"I can't face them," Erin said clinging onto Nate

"Okay" the teacher nodded "You two just go back to the common room and keep things calm then"

Nate nodded and pulled a tearful Erin up behind him as they left the office

"I'm sorry," Erin whispered as they walked down the corridor

"Don't ever apologise for being upset" Nate told her gently "And don't listen to anyone who says otherwise"

They stopped in the deserted corridor and Erin turned to face Nate. The two of them stared at each other for a moment before Nate gently leaned in and tenderly kissed Erin.


	24. Love Is The Name Of The Game

Leo was watching Erin carefully from his position in the kitchen .He'd received a phone call from Erin's school earlier informing him of her slight upset during the day and had resolved to keep an eyes on her. Currently she was sitting at the table, tongue stuck firmly between her teeth, as she tried to work on a biology question. She didn't seem too upset currently but she was a little too quiet for Leo's liking

"Erin?" he called bringing the girl out of her thoughts "Are you okay?"

"Fine" she forced a brief smile onto her face

"Only you're a little quiet this evening and I thought as Janet's working this evening maybe you and I could have a little talk"

Erin snapped her biology book shut "I'd hoped you say that" she said, "Because there is something I need to talk to you about"

"Good" Leo said sitting down opposite her taking a sip of his coffee

"Boys"

"What exactly about boys?" Leo asked cautiously

"Kissing them"

Leo almost spat out a mouthful of the hot liquid "Sorry?"

"I kissed a boy today," Erin said slowly

"Really?" Leo asked not sure whether to be horrified or amused

"Well no, he kissed me actually" Erin frowned

"Right…"

"How do I know if I'm in love?" Erin asked innocently

"Aren't you a little young to be in love?" Leo asked

"No, I don't think so"

"Right…" Leo took a deep breath "So a boy kissed you today and now you want to know if you're in love"

"Pretty much" Erin nodded

"Could you not talk to Nikki about this?" Leo asked desperately

Erin shook her head "She'd start to plan my wedding" she sighed "And I am not ever getting married"

Leo smiled at his girl's resolute attitude "You might change your mind one day"

"Doubt it" Erin snorted in disgust "But how do I know if I'm in love?"

"Well…" Leo began "It's no easy matter"

"That's such an adult response" Erin rolled her eyes

"Well it's a complex matter" Leo told her

Erin sighed loudly "I'm going to ask Nikki," she told him and Leo breathed a sigh of relief

…………………………………………………………………………………………

The next day when Nikki picked Erin up from school, the girl launched into her second interrogation

"I think I'm in love," she told Nikki who smiled to herself

"Oh really?"

Erin nodded "But I'm not sure"

"Have you talked to Leo about this?"

"Yes" Erin said simply "But he's rubbish at girl talk"

"As are most men" Nikki chuckled

"But how do I know if I'm in love?"

"Well…" Nikki said slowly "How do you feel around them?"

"My stomach feels funny" Erin blushed

"Like it's full of butterflies?" Nikki asked and Erin nodded

"And my heart beats really, really fast like it did when he kissed me"

"And did you like him kissing you?" Nikki questioned

Erin paused "It was nice….but I don't understand something. When Leo kisses me goodnight that makes me feel safe and secure. But when Nate…" Erin bit her tongue when she realised that she had name-dropped

"Nate?" Nikki noticed it immediately "The boy with the shaggy hair?"

"You can't tell anyone," Erin begged and Nikki nodded

"Go on…" she prompted

Once Erin was sure Nikki would keep her promise she continued "But when Nate kissed me, it made me feel…." Her sentence trailed off and she made a noise of frustration "I don't know the word," she growled in annoyance

"It makes you feel wanted," Nikki told her "It makes you want nothing else but to stay with them for the rest of eternity just in their hold because with them you finally feel complete. The way you fit perfectly together almost like you were to halves of one whole makes you feel that all the bad times that you've gone through have been worthwhile"

"Yes!" Erin nodded enthusiastically "How did you know that?"

"It's what I feel when I'm with Harry" Nikki blushed "You see, Leo loves you in the way a father loves his daughter, full of compassion and kindness. But Nate, well Nate cares for you in a different way Erin…."

"I felt that when he kissed me" Erin said slowly "So am I in love?" she asked

"Only you can know that" Nikki smiled at her

"Why isn't there one straight answer?" Erin groaned

"Welcome to the wonderful chaotic world of relationships" Nikki told her with a grin

…………………………………………………………………………………………

The next day it was Harry's turn to pick Erin up from school and she decided to launch her attack on him

"Erin are you alright?" Harry said as he glanced across to the girl who was staring absentmindedly out of the window

"Yes" she smiled

"You're being very strange…."

"I'm always strange" she quipped

"But no strange in your usual Erin kind of way" he told her and she grinned at him

"I'm in love," she told him

Harry nearly crashed the car

"Love?" he spluttered as he regained

"Yes" Erin said resolutely "I decided today"

"When?"

"During art" she told him

"Oh" Harry said trying to make sense of this

"I don't want a boyfriend through" Erin wrinkled her nose "Do you think I can just be in love without having to have a relationship"

"I don't think that'll work Erin…" Harry sighed

"You and Nikki were like that for six years" Erin retorted

"That was different," Harry, said trying to move the conversation away from his love life

"Why?" Erin asked innocently

"Because we are adults," Harry said and Erin snorted with laughter

"Even though I'm more mature than you!" Erin said launching into a rant

Harry just sighed with relief as he realised he had successfully diverted the conversation

…………………………………………………………………………………………

"Leo I've decided something" Erin said sitting down in front of Leo who was just finishing a report

"And what's that?" he asked

"I don't want a boyfriend" Erin said and Leo breathed a sigh of relief "But I can still be in love"

Leo frowned as he tried to process what she was saying

"I'll be like Harry and Nikki," she told him

"Anything but that" Leo groaned, "I had to put up with years of tension between the pair before they finally admitted their feelings for one another"

"I think it's sweet," Janet said walking into the room

"I didn't ask you," Erin muttered

"Erin!" Leo reprimanded, "Don't speak to Janet like that, it's rude"

"She shouldn't have been listening in to the conversation," Erin protested

"I'm sor…" Janet began before Leo cut her off

"She wasn't listening in Erin, it was an open conversation and anyway you shouldn't speak to people like that"

"Why do you always side with her?" Erin said, a thundercloud passing across her usually sweet features

"I don't" Leo said calmly trying to avoid an argument, "You know you were out of line and I want you to apologise"

"Sorry" Erin said moodily

"Like you mean it…."

"Sorry!" Erin bellowed before storming out off the room and slamming the door

Leo closed his eyes momentarily and took a deep breath

"Should I go after her?" Janet asked

Leo shook his head "I'll go" he told her gently "I think I know what's bothering her"

…………………………………………………………………………………………

Erin was shaking with anger as she threw herself onto her bed, screaming into her pillow. She suddenly felt a weight on the bed and looked up to see Leo watching her

"I _am_ sorry…," she said and Leo could hear the repentance in her voice

"I know," he told her "But you needn't have shouted Erin"

"Why can't it go back to just being you and me?" she asked

Leo sighed, his assumption of what had been bothering Erin was clearly correct "Because sometimes things have to change and you will get used to it, you just have to give it some time"

"I don't want things to change" Erin mumbled

"I know" Leo repeated "But please just give it a little more time" he reasoned with her "She's only been here a couple of weeks and it will take some getting used to"

"Fine" Erin gave up and rolled back over into her bed

"Good girl" Leo said, "Are you coming back down?"

Erin shook her head "I want to do some reading," she said holding up a copy of 'Pride and Prejudice'

"I should think you know that off by heart now," Leo teased

"I want to know more about this love thing" Erin told him and flicked to a marked page in the book

Leo gently left the room and closed the door quietly behind him. He knew that the crisis had been averted for now and to him, that was all that mattered.

**Author's note: Sorry for being rubbish with the updates! A little question though: Is the whole conflict/angst getting a little bit much? That seems to be all I can write now, I am not so good with the fluff. **


	25. Love, Lies and Late Night Phonecalls

**Thanks to Lilypad1 for giving me the idea for this chapter :)**

"Did Erin tell you she had a boyfriend?" Nikki said one evening as she and Harry curled up on the sofa together.

"Yes," Harry nodded "I nearly crashed the car,"

Nikki chuckled "I think it's sweet,"

"You would," Harry muttered, "I've seen your stack of Mills and Boon books,"

"I'm looking after them for a friend," Nikki said defensively

"Sure," Harry rolled his eyes

"Don't you think she's too young?" Harry questioned stroking Nikki's hair

Nikki shrugged "I was only thirteen when I had my first boyfriend,"

"I was in my twenties," Harry sighed and Nikki flinched when she realised he was remembering the time when Penny turned up at the mortuary.

"She'll be fine," Nikki assured him

"I worry about her," Harry said "After all she's been through,"

Nikki smiled up at her husband "I would save the protective parent act until Alice is older,"

"She's never having a boyfriend," Harry said looking horrified

"Harry!" Nikki squeaked

"Okay, when she's thirty maybe," Harry reasoned "But I will castrate him if he even remotely hurts her feelings,"

"You and me both," Nikki nodded "But don't you think we're just being slightly overprotective?"

"No," Harry said "If she's going to be anything like her mother then we'll have boys cueing up outside,"

"I'm not sure whether that's a compliment or not," Nikki frowned

"Definitely a compliment," Harry said leaning over to kiss Nikki.

"Hmm, I'm not so sure?" she said

Harry kissed her again "How about now?" he asked

"I think I need one more just to be sure," Nikki said lying down next to Harry, curling up in his protective arms.

…..

Erin was lying on her bed staring blankly at the ceiling. Leo and Janet had gone out for an evening walk but she knew it was just Leo's ploy to give her some space to think. It wasn't that she didn't like Janet but Erin wasn't sure whether she wanted another mother. Her own one had been bad enough and she struggled to let Nikki into her life, another woman was going to be too much. She sighed and rolled over, knocking her book on the floor, groaning she stood up and fished the book off the floor.

The doorbell rang.

Erin froze. She knew that Leo had taken his key, he had told her so. She'd seen him pocket the key of course he might have lost it but Leo wasn't so careless and anyway Janet had her own set now.

The doorbell rang again.

Erin tried to reason; it could be Harry or Nikki. They might be coming over to come to get a file off Leo. However, wouldn't they phone, or just wait for tomorrow? Erin was sure that Harry and Nikki were having a quiet night in anyway.

Someone was hammering on the door now.

Erin took a deep breath to steady herself. Her heart was racing as she crept down the stairs. The night was drawing in quickly and there was shadows creeping in all around her. She either could stay in the suffocating darkness or open the door. Doing a rough calculation in her head, she was sure that behind the door it would be Harry, Nikki or Leo or Janet. She refused to consider the chance it wasn't. She was on the last stair now and she could see a shadow looming by the front door. Gingerly she opened the door and stared out into the darkness, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the gloom.

"Hello Erin." a rasping voice croaked.

Erin froze to the spot. On the doorstep was Nora looking worse for wear. Her lank hair was stuck to her face and was dirtied with cigarette ash. She had no make-up on her face apart from bright red lipstick on her face which only functioned to make her look even more dreary. She was dressed in a fake fur coat to shield her from the cold evening.

"You're not allowed anywhere near me, Erin squeaked

"I'm an innocent woman,"

"You still have a restraining order,"

"Who's going to enforce it," Nora said taking a step towards Erin

"I'll scream," Erin threatened

"Remember what happened last time," Nora said noticing the slight limp Erin had "Poor broken Erin,"

"Get away from here," Erin said feeling a pain shooting up her leg.

"Erin?" she heard a voice call and she looked up to see Leo walking towards the front door.

She heard Nora growl at the sight of him.

"If you take one step closer to Erin I will call the police," Leo said squaring up to Nora.

"I'll go away forever if you help me," Nora said and Erin was sure she saw a flicker of fear go across Nora's face.

"One last warning," Leo said ushering Janet into the house.

"Two thousand is al I'm asking,"

"No," Leo said looking disgusted

"I'm in trouble;" Nora was looking scared, "Families are meant to pull together in times of crisis. I need that money,"

"Family," Leo "I hardly think you were acting as Erin's family when you beat her,"

"I need that money. I'll change, I'll go away forever and never come back," Nora begged

"Even if I had the money I wouldn't give it to you," Leo said angrily "You've lied and manipulated those around you. Erin's part of my family now, she's where she belongs now and I am determined that she will remain around those who love her,"

Leo put his arm around Erin and shut the door behind him, closing them off to Nora's shouts and curses.

"Erin?" Leo called as she shook herself free of him and walked slowly up the stairs.

"It's been a long day, I just want to sleep," she mumbled as she stepped into her room and shut the door behind her.

…...

Erin punched a string of familiar digits into her phone and listened whilst the phone connected her.

"Hello?" a voice echoed in her ear

"It's me Nate," she said quietly

"I gathered," she could hear the laughter in his voice "I've got caller ID."

Erin didn't answer and Nate picked up on this straight away.

"Is everything okay?"

"I just wanted to hear your voice," Erin sniffed away a stray tear

"You don't sound okay," Nate said sounding concerned

"I am," Erin said forcing brightness into her voice.

Nate was about to reply when Erin heard his mother calling to him in the background.

"I have to go," he sounded apologetic "Hang in there Erin,"

"I told you I'm fine," she assured him

"Sure you are," he sighed, "But just hang in there regardless,"

Erin let out a small sob as they finished their phone call. She fell asleep soon afterwards clutching the phone to her chest as she slept with Nate's words echoing in her ears.

**Author's note: Sorry for the serious lack of updates, I've had exams and revision really took over my life. I'm getting back to writing now.**


	26. An Unexpected Return

It was a Saturday morning, two weeks had passed since Nora's visit, and Leo was up to his elbows in blood, guts and general gore. Erin had come with him to work that morning and was currently waiting in the lab for him

"Could you take a photo of the laceration?" Leo asked one of the lab technicians who stepped forward and swiftly take a shot of the deep wound on the stomach

Leo checked over his notes and decided he had enough detail for his report, he let Charlie step in to stitch the body back up and he was just about to take off his gloves and apron when he heard a voice calling

"Leo?" Harry called "We've got another body just come in,"

Leo sighed. It was clearly going to be a long day

The trolley was wheeled in and the black body bag was placed on one of the examination tables. Leo pulled on a fresh pair of gloves and slowly pulled the zip of the bag down. As soon as he saw who was inside hew felt his stomach lurch and he swore under his breath

"Leo?" Harry asked looking concerned

"It's Nora," Leo shook his head "It's Erin's Godmother,"

The older man hurriedly closed the bag again and turned to Harry

"I don't want Erin in the same building as her," Leo told Harry firmly who nodded

"I'll phone Nikki and see if she'll pick Erin up,"

Leo nodded a silent thank you as Harry left the cutting room, already punching the familiar digits into his phone. Leo took a moment to compose himself before pulling off his apron and gloves and moving back towards the lab where Erin was waiting.

When he walked into his office, he saw Erin curled up on a chair with her nose firmly stuck in a book. She was so absorbed it took him a few tries to get her attention and when he finally did, the cheery smile she greeted him with almost broke his heart

"You need to get your things together," he told her "Nikki's coming to pick you up,"

Erin looked confused "Why?" she asked

"Just don't ask questions!" Leo snapped

Erin's face visibly dropped at his tone and the older man took another deep breath

"Please, just trust me Erin," he told her calmly "I'll explain everything later"

"She's here isn't she?" Erin tensed as she recognised the signs of Leo's body language

"Get your things together please," Leo told her firmly

"Where is she?" Erin asked full of fear now

"Harry!" Leo called as he saw the dark haired man rush into the lab

"I can't get through to Nikki," he told Leo

"Will someone tell me what's going on?" Erin said, her voice full of terror

Harry glanced across at Leo who shook his head

"I'll explain later" Leo repeated as he bundled Erin's things into her bag

"Harry…" Erin said turning to the younger man

"Sorry," he said unhappily, as Leo led Erin out of the door by the hand, saddened by the look of betrayal on her face

"Leo…" Erin called as he pulled her along down the corridor "Please stop…I'm scared,"

"Please Erin…" Leo said through gritted teeth as he pulled her along faster

"Leo, stop!" Erin called "You're hurting me!"

The pain in Erin's voice registered and Leo stopped suddenly and loosened his grip on Erin

"I'm sorry," he said as the girl rubbed her arm "I'm so sorry," Leo took her in his arms and held her tightly to soothe the girl who was on the brink of tears. Erin stepped back but her leg buckled underneath her and she fell to the floor with a cry. Leo was immediately at her side as was Harry who had heard the cry

"Was it your injured leg?" Leo sighed and Erin nodded rubbing her knee

"Can you stand?" Harry asked

"I don't think so…" Erin murmured

"What if we help you?" he asked and she nodded

Erin slipped her arms around the shoulders of Harry and Leo and they gently helped her to her feet. Erin hissed in pain in the process but held tightly onto Leo and Harry

"I'll take her," Harry said and Leo nodded as Erin released her grip

"Harry's going to take you to their place and I'll pick you up later and I promise I will explain everything"

Erin nodded, still a little in shock. Leo gently kissed her before hurrying off down the corridor

"Are you okay to walk?" he asked, "I'll be here…"

Erin nodded and still holding onto Harry, she slowly limped out of the Lyell Centre and towards Harry's car.

"I'll drive you back to ours, Nikki will probably be back by the time we get there," he told her to a silent reply.

She sat in the car, taking deep breaths to calm herself.

"She's dead." It was less of a question and more of a statement.

"Erin…" Harry began

"The only people who turn up to the mortuary are dead," Erin said bluntly

"What about Leo and I?" Harry asked as they pulled out of the car park

"Leo's from the Jurassic period and have you seen yourself first thing in the morning?" Erin echoed Harry's words when she had first turned up at the lab.

Harry smiled to himself, Erin must be feeling a little better if she could make jokes, "Traffic's good so we'll be there soon," he told her as the whizzed through the empty streets.

…

Leo was standing over the body of Nora Rhys as he conducted the post-mortem.

"There appears to be a lot of track marks on both arms, consistent with drug use" Leo said as Charlie recorded the data "From the outside there seems to be no obvious cause of death,"

"What do you think happened?" Charlie asked

"Probably an overdose," Leo said "But we'll open her up and check just to be sure. Can you take some blood samples for me and send tem off to toxicology,"

"Sure," Charlie nodded "Professors…" she began slowly "…is she who I think she is?"

"Yes," Leo said sharply "And I want this to be kept between just you and me. I don't want this getting out to anyone, especially Erin,"

Charlie nodded again "Where is Erin now?"

"Doctor Cunningham's taken her home. It's best she doesn't know yet," Leo said and began to cut open the body in front of him.

…

"I want to know what's going on," Erin demanded

She was standing in the living room in front of Harry and Nikki, who had returned after a morning out shopping with Alice.

"I promised Leo," Harry said to Nikki

"Please Erin you have to trust us," Nikki said softly

"I have a right to know!" Erin said, her voice rising an octave

"Leo will explain later," Harry said calmly "But for now you just have to trust us,"

"I've been doing that for all of my life," Erin spat "And everyone always lets me down so give me one reason why I should?" she said squaring up to the two adults in the room.

"There is no good reason," Harry said quietly "And I'm sorry Erin but you've got no other choice."

With that, Harry and Nikki gently left the room, closing the door behind them, leaving Erin to release her anger and fear.


	27. Putting the Plan into Action

Nikki held her breath as she listened outside of the living room door. Erin had quietened and now Nikki could hear a gentle sobbing coming from the room. Slowly she opened the door and looked upon the girl who was curled up on the floor, her body convulsing with each sob that ripped through it.

"Has she exhausted herself yet?" Harry asked coming up behind Nikki

Nikki nodded and took their daughter from Harry "Go in there and talk to her," she nodded towards the living room.

"Why me?" Harry frowned

"I don't think she wants a female presence at the moment," Nikki said.

Harry quietly walked into the room and sat in a chair in front of Erin who had drawn her knees tightly up to her chest.

"Do you want a drink of water?" he asked and she shook her head

"How did she die?" Erin asked after a moment's silence

"That's what Leo's trying to find out," Harry said softly "But you needn't be scared, you're perfectly safe here,"

"You think I'm scared?" Erin exclaimed

"It's perfectly natural…" Harry began but was cut off by Erin

"I'm furious," she explained, "She was the last link to my father and now she's gone and died,"

"Erin…"

"This is so like her," Erin shouted, "She took all knowledge of my father away and just left me with this," she flung the photo of her father at Harry

"You kept it," he said sounding surprised, staring at the photo.

"Of course I did," Erin let out a small so as she took the photo back from Harry and cradled it to her chest.

Harry was about to reply when he heard the doorbell ring. Nikki's voice drifted towards them and was soon joined with Leo's deeper tone. They heard the door open again and this time Leo walked into the room. Erin immediately turned away still clutching at the photo.

"How is she?" Leo said softly to Harry

"Confused," Harry, told him "But then again she's bound to be,"

Leo nodded and took a step towards Erin calling her name "Can we talk?" he asked gently and she nodded.

Erin took a seat and Leo sat down next to her leaving space between them sensing that she didn't want closeness at that moment.

"Erin, today a body was brought into the mortuary and I'm sure you've already worked it out, but it was Nora,"

He looked across at Erin who was staring hard at the floor keeping her thoughts silent.

"I've done a post-mortem on her to see how she died. From what I can work out she died of a drug overdose, most likely heroine,"

She still said nothing.

"Erin…" Leo prompted

"I want to go home," she said quietly standing up.

"Okay," Leo said gently leading her out of the room shooting Harry a worried look.

…

Erin was curled up in the corner of her room. Her knees were tightly drawn up to her chest and she clutched the phone closely to her ear as she engaged in a hushed conversation.

"Can I meet with you tomorrow?" she said into the phone

"_Sure,"_ Nate said _"But what's happened?"_

"I can't say right now," Erin whispered

"_Why are you whispering?"_ he asked

"Because Leo might overhear…"

"_Okay, I guess that makes sense…"_

"Are you just saying that to humour me?"

"_Yes,"_ Nate said honestly and Erin let out a small chuckle despite herself

"So tomorrow morning in the park?"

"_I'll be there."_ Nate said firmly

Erin put her phone down as they finished the conversation. She was feeling very mixed up but talking to Nate had helped. Erin knew what she had to do, she only hoped that Nate would be as willing to help as she wanted him to be .

…

It was early on Sunday morning when Nate arrived at the park. He sat down on the bench, which was their agreed meeting point and waited. He must have been there five minutes when he saw Erin approaching in the distance. She was dressed in jeans and an oversized hoodie, her hair was tied back off her face and there was a determined look in her eye, something that always worried Nate.

"Thanks for coming," she said sitting down next to him

"No problem," he said squeezing her hand "So what's up?"

"Nora's dead." Erin said bluntly

Nate started in shock "Are you serious?"

She nodded "A drug overdose apparently,"

"I'm sorry…"

"I'm not." Erin said angrily "Not matter how harsh that sounds. However, I am frustrated. She was the only one who knows anything about my dad."

Erin drew the tattered photo of her dad out of her pocket and passed it to Nate.

"This is all I have of my dad, that and the dreams…"

"Oh Erin…" Nate sighed

"I've been dreaming about him more and more Nate. The dreams are getting clearer and I know that they're trying to tell me something."

"Really?" Nate said sceptically

"I know that sounds totally absurd but I think they're telling me to search for him. I'm meant to find out about my dad."

"But Nora's dead, how are you going to find out anything?"

"If she had this," Erin said motioning to the photo "Then she must have other things belonging to my dad. Mum never mentioned dad and there seemed to be no trace of him in the house."

"She could have thrown it all away,"

"Then why did this photo survive?" Erin said and Nate shrugged

"So what's your plan?"

"We go to Nora's house. If I remember correctly, I've been there before when I was very little,"

"You can be serious?" Nate exclaimed, "That's practically breaking the law!"

Erin rolled her eyes "We'll be in and out really quickly and anyway I'm not asking you to come in with me, just to keep lookout"

"You're going to do this whether I come or not aren't you?" he asked and Erin nodded "Fine, I'll come but only because someone's got to keep you out of trouble. But I'm giving you ten minutes,"

"I'll be out in five," she told him as they made their way out of the park.

"Does Leo know about this?"

Erin shook her head, looking slightly guilty

"Where does he think you are this morning?" Nate frowned

"At yours studying. Where does your mum think you are?"

"At yours studying," Nate sighed, "This better work Erin or otherwise we'll be in deep trouble,"

"I promise" Erin said but she that glint in her eyes that always worried Nate.

**Author's note: Sorry for the delay in this chapter, I wasn't happy with it so I had to re-write about ¾ of it!. **


	28. My Darling Erin

**Warning: This chapter contains implied reference to suicide **

Erin's memory, although blurry, had severed her correct. She had remembered the bus route and they'd made it in less than an hour. Nate and Erin were now standing outside a dilapidated ground floor flat in a grim looking area.

"Are you sure this is the correct place?" Nate asked

Erin nodded "I remember being left out here whilst mum went drinking" she said motioning to the front door step.

She took a step forward towards the door and gave it a little push, it was locked and no amount of ramming from either Nate or Erin would budge it.

"What are you going to do now?" Nate said resting his hands on his knees whilst he got his breath back.

Erin wrinkled her nose as she glanced around, she'd been relying on the door to be open or at least be less secure. She looked around and finally a smile broke across her face when she realised her way in had been right under her nose.

"Give me a leg up," she said to Nate, motioning to the boarded up window.

"Erin…" Nate said reluctantly, it looked dangerous and Erin was hardly the most graceful person.

Erin just rolled her eyes and started to hoist herself up. Nate decided it would be less risky if he helped her up, at least then she was less likely to knock herself out in the process. With Nate's help, she was level with the window and managed to prise the boarding off the window.

"Are you going to fit through there?" Nate asked

"What are you trying to say?" Erin said twisting back to look at him

"Erin, please concentrate on the window and not plunging to your death," Nate sighed

"It's only a short drop," she said looking down

"Onto rock hard concrete," Nate said trying not to picture what would happen if she slipped.

"I'm going in," she said swinging one leg into the room "Nate and Erin's awesome adventure continues"

That was the last Nate saw of Erin as she slipped through the window and into the darkness of the house. He heard no noise from her apart from the small thump as she dropped to the floor.

"Five minutes," Nate called

"Yes dear," Erin shouted back

Inside the house, it was dark and damp. There was just enough light to see and Erin could just make out some battered old furniture and a dented television that looked worse for wear. She searched through the draws in the kitchen but she could find nothing there apart from some dirty cutlery. She sighed, there seemed to be no other obvious hiding places in the house.

Erin was on the brink of giving up when she spotted the battered old bed in the corner. She smiled to herself; it was the perfect place to hide things out of sight and mind. Dropping reluctantly to her hands and knees, she crawled until she was level with the bed and pushed the top half of her body underneath it. The dust was thick under there and it made Erin sneeze, however dust was the only thing that seemed to have taken up refuge in the bed. Feeling her muscles start to cramp she tried to move out but only succeeded in banging her head on the iron bed frame. Her eyes started to water and she tried to move her hand to rub the bump on her skull, it was just as she was doing this action that her hand brushed against something.

In the corner was a battered old shoebox, Erin grabbed it and pulled herself out of the claustrophobic space. The dim light in the room showed the shoebox was in as bad a condition as the rest of the room but Erin was undeterred. Setting it down on the floor next to her she gingerly opened the lid to reveal a whole bunch of papers nestled within the yellow cardboard structure.

"What is all of this?" Erin mumbled to herself

As she searched through the box, she found stacks of photographs of her mother and Nora. She set these down on the floor, turning them over so she didn't have to see her mother's face. The room was ghostly enough without the eyes of her dead mother following and watching her every move. There seemed to be no trace of Erin pr her father in the box, there were no photos of anyone apart from ghouls of her past. Even when she came across her mother's wedding album, she found that her fathers face had been cut out of all the photos turning what should have been happy photographs into eerie works of surreal art.

Right at the bottom of the art, half hidden by the rest of the contents was a yellowed envelope. When she picked it up, she gasped as she saw her name scrawled across the front in beautiful italic handwriting. Erin didn't recognise the handwriting, it wasn't like her mother's block capitals or Nora's scratchy scrawl. This was something new and striking; Erin was shaking as she opened the envelope and pulled out the paper inside. With shaking hands and an aching heart, she started to read.

_My darling Erin, _

_I'm sorry I have to write this letter but you deserve to know why I am no longer in your life. Erin, I can't find the words to describe how happy you make me, I am honoured to be your father but I can't stay and watch you grow up._

_You were the smallest baby I have ever seen, the doctor's didn't even think you'd make the night, but I knew you would. My little fighter, you have surprised us all reaching your first birthday. But I can't stay any longer Erin and I'm sorry. I know you might not understand why I have done this and I'm not sure I can even find the words to explain. _

_Your mother and me met when we were still in school and we married when we were still children. However, people grow up and change, your mother changed from the sweet girl I once knew into a monster. Things got worse and worse between us until she found out she was pregnant with you. I thought this would bring us back together but sometimes things are too broken to fix. _

_Erin, I know that sometimes your mother won't act in a loving way but know that you have not suffered alone. I wish I could be there to soothe every bruise and slap, I wish I could hold you and soothe you when you cry from the pain and I wish I could tell you things will work out but I can't. _

_I don't expect you to accept what I have done but if you let me into your heart, I will always stay there. Erin, there are good people in the world and I know that times are dark but if you can find that small sanctuary in the darkness then it will make the pain just that little bit more bearable. _

_I have to go now my love, know that I love you forever and always. You will eternally have my heart as you did when I first set eyes on you. Please keep on fighting and searching for that sanctuary, I will always be with you when you want me. _

_I love you my darling little girl and I want you to know that. None of this is your fault. I am giving this note to your godmother in the hope she will explain it to you one day. _

_My eternal love to you my beloved,_

_Dad_

Erin was shaking all over as she read the words on the paper. She felt sick and clammy as she took in what she was holding. The tears bubbled up inside of her and streamed down her cheeks. This was her father's suicide note, something he had left for her and something that Nora had cruelly taken away from her. A chiming of the clock brought her to her senses and she remembered Nate was still waiting outside, slipping the note into her pocket she made her way out of the room. Still shaking she managed to make it through the window.

"Nate, I found it," she called as she dropped to the floor.

However it wasn't Nate that was waiting for her outside the window, but a stern looking police officer.


	29. Mothers, Melodrama and More Heartbreak

A DC Taylor at the police station met Leo; the two knew it each other from working on a case a few years back. Taylor had phoned Leo to tell him that Erin was in police custody.

"She was caught breaking and entering," Taylor explained as they walked through the station to the waiting room "She was with a friend but he was a look out,"

"I can't believe Erin would do anything like this, she told me she was studying,"

Taylor chuckled "She's a teenager Leo, they lie."

He left Leo in a dingy waiting room whilst he sorted out the paperwork. The room was filled with hard plastic chairs and in the corner were a young teenage boy and an older woman

"Professor Dalton I assume?" a stern looking woman in a black suit said rising from her seat. Her dark hair was pulled off her face into a tight bun and her lips were pursed tightly together.

"Yes…" Leo said cautiously

"I'm Fiona Austen," she said "Nathaniel's mother,"

"Ah," Leo said and Nate looked up at him guiltily

"I think we need to talk about your daughter," she said curtly

"Of course," Leo said sitting down

Fiona took a deep breath "Your daughter is clearly trouble. I don't want such a girl around Nathaniel; she's a bad influence on him."

"Hold on," Leo began "We don't know exactly what went on yet,"

"I know she had had a troubled upbringing but that does not excuse her criminal behaviour…"

"Erin might be a little wild but she's not a criminal," Leo frowned

Fiona's lips were pursed together again "I don't want your daughter anywhere near my son,"

"Mum!" Nate protested from the corner "You can't do that; she's my best friend,"

"Quiet Nathaniel, you're in enough trouble as it is," Fiona snapped, "Keep your daughter away from my son. You may think such behaviour is acceptable but I do not,"

Fiona took Nate by the arm and led him out of the room; Nate craned his neck to look back at Leo who shot him an apologetic glance.

A few minutes after they left the room, DC Taylor re-entered with Erin following behind him.

"We've decided not to charge her," The office informed Leo "But we've given her a stern talking to and I don't think she's going to try anything like this again, are you Erin?"

She shook her head, staring hard at her feet.

"Thank you," Leo said, "I owe you,"

The DC smiled "She's not a bad kid, just a little overenthusiastic, it appears she doesn't always think before she acts,"

"I am still in the room you know," Erin muttered

"Come on Erin," Leo said leading her out of the station

"Are you angry with me?" she asked as they walked into the car park

"I'm more disappointed," he said as they reached his car

"Oh…" Erin said quietly "That's worse than angry,"

They drove in silence for a while until Erin spoke up once more "Am I grounded?"

"Of course," Leo nodded

"How long for?"

"The rest of your life,"

"That's a long time," Erin sighed

"It won't be if you keep up this behaviour," Leo said firmly "Erin I'm not sure what's gotten into you but it needs to stop. Do you know how embarrassing it was for me to have to walk out of my meeting with the coroner because I've found out that not only have you lied to me about where you were but also that you've been arrested?"

"I'm sorry," Erin mumbled

"Sorry is just a word Erin; it doesn't mean anything unless you show me that you're sorry,"

"Am I really grounded for the rest of my life?"

"Yes," Leo said shortly "And believe me young lady, that's just the start of it. No drawing for the next month and I'm taking away your copy of 'Pride and Prejudice' as well,"

"That is so unfair!" Erin squeaked

"You should of thought of that before you broke into the flat,"

"That is so against my human rights," Erin muttered

"There's something else I need to talk to you about," Leo said bracing himself for what he was about to tell her.

"I doubt it can make me feel much worse,"

"Nate's mother doesn't want you to see him anymore,"

"What!" Erin shouted "Why?"

"She thinks you're a bad influence on him. Now I wouldn't go that far, but we have to respect her wishes as his parent,"

"He's my only friend," Erin said looking dismayed

"It won't necessarily be forever, but I think so time apart might do you some good,"

"My life is over," she said trying to hold back the tears

"Don't be so melodramatic Erin," Leo said sternly "You're nearly an adult so I expect you to take fully responsibility for your actions, to face up to the consequences and to accept any punishment in a mature and civilised manner Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes," Erin said softly and lapsed into silence for the rest of the journey.

…

Erin was hurting.

Physically she was sore from climbing in and out of the flat but she was hurting inside. Being separated from Nate indefinitely had really cut her up inside and she couldn't imagine not speaking to him everyday. But most of all, she was hurting because of the letter she had found, Erin had not told the police or Leo she had it and she'd kept it stored away in the pocket of her jeans.

'_My darling Erin…'_

Even that just made her well up. This was a letter from _her_ father, in his handwriting, to her. It was almost as if he was speaking to her from behind the grave. Spooky as it was, she couldn't deal with that now. Right now, she was so hurt from the fact Nora had kept the letter from her, leaving her without reason or rhyme to why her dad had been absent from her life. Erin had blamed herself for so long, she'd cried herself to sleep for years and cringed at every moment when someone asked her where her 'real' dad was. However, he was here, on the paper, speaking to her in words that touched her heart to the point of breaking it.

She needed to tell someone, to talk to someone. Nate would have been happy to listen but the two had been separated by the cruel decisions of their parents. Erin needed to speak out about this, she wanted to tell the world that she had finally found her dad, but the decision had been taken out of her hands and she was now enclosed by silence.

Silence and the ghostly words of her dead father.


	30. Lessons to be Learned

Harry watched Erin from across the lab; Leo had picked her up from school a few hours ago so she had no way of escaping her punishment. She had her biology textbook in front of her, but Erin's eyes were glazed over and she hadn't turned the page in a good twenty minutes.

"Interesting book?" Harry said

"What?" she said glancing up

"I think you'd best spend your time doing homework and not daydreaming,"

Erin shrugged and turned back to her work. She looked glum. Clearly, the separation from her friend was taking its toll, but Harry sensed there was something else. He left his paperwork and walked over to the young girl who was staring at a page depicting the human heart.

"If a heart stops beating, can it still feel?" she asked as Harry sat down next to her

"What do you mean?"

"If a heart stops, can a person still love?"

Harry frowned "Emotions come from the brain and the human psyche not the heart,"

"So why when is it when you're sad it feels like your heart is breaking?"

"Are you sad Erin?" Harry asked gently

"Yes," she said quietly

"Are you sad because you're not allowed to be around Nate?"

She nodded "And because…" but her sentence died away

"Because what?"

She looked up at him "Can you keep a secret?"

"Depends on what the secret is?"

Harry watched as Erin slipped her hand into her bag and pulled out a battered old envelope. She passed it to Harry who gently took out the contents.

'_My Darling Erin…' _

"Did you take this from Nora's house?" Harry frowned

"Technically it's addressed to me,"

"Technically its theft," he scolded "Does Leo know about this?"

Erin said nothing but the guilty look on her face suggested that the Professor knew nothing of the letter.

"I'll have to tell him," Harry sighed

"I have a right to know about my dad," Erin protested

"You also have the right to remain silent but you never seem to take that one up," Harry said standing up

"Please don't Harry,"

"Erin…" Harry warned

The girl looked up at him, her pale eyes pleading with him. He didn't want to get her into anymore trouble but Leo needed to know about this.

"Look I know you want to know about your father, I understand, I needed to know about mine too but there are ways and means of going about it. Stealing isn't one of them,"

"I know…" Erin's head drooped

"I'm going to give this to Leo, but if you still want to know about your father, I will help you,"

"Really?" she asked cautiously

He nodded "But only if you prove to me I can trust you,"

Erin said nothing and he took her silence as a sign of consent. Leaving the girl to her homework, he made his way into Leo's office where the man in question was typing a report at his computer.

"Have you finished the report on the Nora Rhys?" Leo asked

"Nearly," Harry said, "Leo, Erin just showed me this,"

He gave the older man the letter. Leo quickly scanned over it and his face dropped when he realised what he was reading.

"Where did she get this?"

Harry raised his eyebrows "Where do you think?"

Leo groaned, "That girl is no end of trouble,"

"She's a little upset; I think she just needed to know about him,"

"There are legal ways and means of going about it,"

"That's what I told her," Harry nodded "Don't be too hard on her Leo, she's gone through enough already,"

"She need to face up to her actions," Leo sighed "She needs to learn she cant solely play by her rules and that sometimes things wont always go her way,"

"I think Erin's leant her lesson," Harry reasoned

"I thought so too but this letter makes me doubt that," Leo said sounding frustrated

"Don't be too hard on her Leo," Harry said leaving the office, "It wasn't that long ago she was the drenched scrap of a girl curled up in the car park,"

"It doesn't excuse her behaviour,"

"No," Harry agreed "But it does go some way to explaining it,"

He walked back the lab, leaving Leo deep in his thoughts as he glanced over the letter.

…

Park Lane School's resident art teacher, Mr Peters sighed as he watched over his pupils in the classroom. Whilst most of them were busily chatting away whilst they worked, there were two exceptions.

In one corner, Nathaniel Austen sat hunched up over his work and on the opposite side of the classroom, Erin Dalton sat idly doodling in her sketchpad. He had received an e-mail from the head teacher that morning detailing Mrs Austen's wishes that her son was to be removed form the presence of Erin. With great reluctance like all their other teachers, he had separated the pair and sat them at opposite sides of the classroom.

"Erin," he called across to the girl "Please get on with your work,"

She shrugged and ignored him, still doodling on the paper rather than finishing off her painting.

"Erin," he said more sternly

"What?" she snapped

Mr Peters was taken back at this show of foul attitude and immediately took her outside of the classroom for a stern word.

"Erin your exams are in a few months and that coursework needs to be finished before you start planning your exam piece. Now I know that situation right now is not ideal and I can understand why you are upset but I will not have this attitude, do you understand me?" he said firmly

"Yes sir," Erin sighed moodily

"I'm not sure you do," Mr Peters said analysing the girl's attitude

"Well I do," she shouted

"I think you need time to reflect on your attitude Miss Dalton. I'm giving you detention after school tonight where you will think about what is the right way to behave in front of your peers and the staff at this school," Mr Peters said, hardly able to believe he was giving Erin a detention." Now you are going to go back into the classroom and get on with your work and I don't want to hear a peep out of you for the rest of the lesson."

She stalked back into the classroom and sat down at her desk, pulling her painting towards her and half-heartedly attempting to work on it. The teacher watched as Nate finally lifted his head and looked across at the young girl with a sad look in his eyes.


	31. Father and Daughter

"Da!" Harry looked up from his work to see his daughter crawling towards him

"Hello Alice," he said scooping the youngster up onto his lap

His daughter was growing up fast, at 18 months old she was starting to walk on her own and put some simple sentences together. Her baby blue eyes had changed to match Nikki's brown ones but her wispy blonde hair had still stayed the same colour.

"Where's mummy?" he asked her

"Right here," Nikki said walking into the room "I didn't know you were going to be home this early?"

Leo let me take paperwork home," Harry told her as he placed Alice on the floor with her toys "I feel as though I've been neglecting you,"

"Hardly," Nikki shook her head

"Nikki, do you think I'm a good father?"

"Where did that question come from?" Nikki frowned

Harry shrugged "I'm not here all the time and when I am I'm tired and moody and…"

"…nothing like your father." Nikki said firmly "Harry you're a brilliant father. You saw the way Alice's eye lit up when she crawled into the room. She adores you and so do I,"

Harry gave her a weak smile as she leant down to kiss him gently

"Kissy!" Alice called from across the room

"I wonder how she learnt that word," Harry chuckled

"Probably picked up on her father's bad habits I imagine," Nikki teased

Harry pushed himself away from his laptop and stacked the files up on the desk. Nikki froze as she caught sight of one of the names

"Mark Jones," she said quietly "Erin's father,"

Harry nodded "She found his suicide note,"

"Where?"

"Nora's house," he said and Nikki sighed, "She just wants to know about him, she needs to know about him,"

"Just like you did," Nikki said understandingly

"More than I did. I at least have some memories of my dad, both good and bad. But Erin has nothing, there's just a blank space,"

"What does the report say?"

Harry flipped open the file "He was found in the bath with his wrists cut. Toxicology showed that he'd taken an overdose of anti-depressants as well,"

"Failsafe," she said and Harry nodded

"There was no mention of the suicide note in the case file," he said, "Her father must have hidden it,"

"Leo's going to have to give it in then," Nikki said "It should at least be known that there was a note,"

Harry made a noise of affirmation "There's a note in here about bruising. He seems to have fingertip bruising to his neck and there were the remains of a black eye,"

"Do you think Erin's mother lashed out at him too?"

Harry nodded "It seems that way and once Mark was gone, well there was just Erin left,"

"Is there any mention of family in the file?" Nikki asked

He flicked through the paper quickly "There's reference to his wife, albeit briefly. There's a little but about Erin, mainly just stating he had a young daughter. There is a mention of a John Rochester but it doesn't sound like he's related to the family,"

"What does it say about him?"

"He found the body apparently so I imagine he's a family friend,"

"I've never heard Erin mention him,"

"Maybe she was too young to remember him," Harry reasoned

"Erin!" Alice called from the play mat

"Yes that's right sweetheart," Nikki cooed

"She's growing up," Harry sighed as he gazed down at his daughter who was wrestling with her soft toy lion

"Everyone has to sometime," Nikki smiled "Even you,"

Harry snorted with laughter "I'm the boy who never grew up,"

"Emotionally you're the same age as Alice," She teased

"Physically I'm all man," Harry grinned

"Oh really?" Nikki raised any eyebrow

"Oh sure," Harry said calmly "I have many women to verify it,"

"And you moan at me for all my inappropriate men,"

"I can be another one of those men," Harry said standing up

Nikki grinned as her husband snaked his arm around her waist "Alice needs a bath," she said turning round to kiss him.

"No she doesn't," Harry protested

"Alice," Nikki called "Daddy's going to given you a bath,"

"Da!" she squealed in delight "Bath, Da!"

"You are evil," Harry sighed, unwinding himself from Nikki and scooping up their daughter from "Come in Alice, let's leave Mummy to suffer on her own whilst we have fun,"

Nikki poked her tongue out at Harry as he took their daughter to the bathroom, listening to the splashes and squeals of delight as father and daughter spent time together.

….

A while later and Nikki was curled up in bed reading when Harry finally stumbled into the room.

"Bathed, bedded and out for the count," he told her

"You look like you had more of a bath than Alice," Nikki giggled as she saw Harry's soaking wet shirt

"Our daughter, rubber ducks and bubble bath are clearly not a good mix," Harry sighed as he pulled on a dry t-shirt

"I think we should give this John Rochester a call," Nikki said

"Do you think?" Harry frowned

Nikki nodded "He might be able to let Erin find some peace,"

"I'll call him tomorrow then,"

"I already have," Nikki grinned "I looked him up in the phone book, along with the five other ',"

Harry rolled his eyes "What did he say?"

"You were right; he was a friend of Erin's father. He lost contact after Mark died but he seemed pretty eager to know how Erin was,"

"You don't think he's another Nora?" Harry asked

Nikki shrugged "He didn't sound like it, but I've asked him to meet us at the lab tomorrow,"

"Does Leo know about this yet?" Harry asked

"Not yet but he'll come round to this idea," Nikki smiled sweetly "And anyway if he doesn't I can use Alice as blackmail,"

"Exploiting our daughter, why Nicola I'm shocked,"

"You married me so deal with it," Nikki grinned as she rolled over in bed, away from Harry, taking half the duvet with her.


	32. Meeting Mr Rochester

**Warning: Again, there are references to suicide **

Nikki had joined Harry in the lab the next day to wait for the arrival of John Rochester. She had dropped Alice off with an old friend and had spent the rest of the time talking to Leo. Leo had been filled in on the plan and wasn't entirely happy about it, but Nikki had managed to talk him round and they were now waiting in his office.

"How do you know he will even come?" Leo asked

"He will," Nikki said resolutely

"You've never even met him Nikki," Harry sighed, "Where's Erin, Leo?" noticing the girl's absence.

"Detention,"

"Again?" Harry said sounding shocked

"This one is for not turning up to the last detention," Leo frowned "I've already had her school on the phone passing on their concerns,"

"Maybe meeting a friend of her fathers will calm her down," Nikki reasoned and Leo shrugged.

Almost on cue Charlie walked into the office followed by a tall man "Mr Rochester," she motioned to the man

"Thanks Charlie," Leo nodded and stood up to greet the man

"Professor Leo Dalton," he smiled "And this is Doctor Harry Cunningham and Doctor Nikki Cunningham,"

"John," the man smiled "You two are married?" he asked Harry and Nikki

"Happily," Nikki smiled

"You were the one I spoke to on the phone," John said recognising Nikki's voice

"I hope you didn't mind," Nikki blushed

John shook his head "To the contrary, I'm glad you did, I've spent years worried about Erin. I'm just glad she's finally found family," his gaze passed back to Leo

"We all are," Leo said offering the man a seat

"May I ask, Nikki was vague on the phone, how did you meet Erin?" John asked cautiously

"We found her sleeping rough in the car park of the lab," Leo said "She was in a bad way and so we got her to hospital. She recovered and was meant to be going into care but she made her way back to us. I couldn't leave her after that and so I took the decision to foster and eventually adopt her,"

John nodded as he took in everything that Leo was saying, "I lost touch with her after her father died. Erin's mother moved them away without a word and she seemed to vanish without a trace,"

"She is rather good at that," Leo nodded

"I saw the police campaign when she ran away," John said "Not that I'm blaming you Professor, But where is she right now?"

"Detention," Leo sighed and John let out a small chuckle

"Just like her father then,"

…

Erin stalked into the lab in a foul mood. Her detention had been doubled and she'd been made to tidy up the art classroom. She looked around for Leo and saw he was sitting in his office with Harry, Nikki and someone Erin didn't recognise. Leo caught her eye and gestured for her to come into his office.

"Erin, this is Mr Rochester,"

She looked up at the man, taking in every detail of his appearance. He was very tall, much taller than she was. Such a figure would seem imposing but he had twinkling blue eyes and smile that relaxed her. He was dressed in a dark suit and shirt, which gave him an air of mystery rather than menace. His sandy hair was cut short meaning Erin could get a good look at his face; it was young but it had the undertones of someone who held the weight of the world on their shoulders, Erin knew that look well, it was one she saw in the mirror every day.

"If you're a social worker…" she began

"He's not a social worker," Leo assured her

"How can you be sure?" she said suspiciously

"Erin, I've not come to break up your family," John said gently "I've come to talk to you,"

"What about?" she said sitting down on a spare chair

"Your father," John said and Erin froze to her seat

"You knew him?"

John nodded "We were old friends, if you want to know about him I'd like to tell you,"

…

John watched Erin carefully as she placed her school bag down and took her hair out of the ponytail. Leo, Nikki and Harry had given them some privacy but Leo assured her he would remain nearby.

"Your name is Mr Rochester then?" she asked and he nodded "Like Jane Eyre's Mr Rochester?"

"Something like that," he nodded "Do you like reading?"

"You're a lot like your father," John smiled

"How so?" Erin frowned "I'm not a man,"

"No you're not," John chuckled "But you've inherited his eyes and his messy hair," he said as she tried to smooth her shoulder length dark locks.

"I know," Erin said and she passed him the photo of her as a baby

"I took this," John told her "This was the first time they let your dad hold you. Up until then you were in a special unit for premature babies,"

"Apparently I was tiny," she said and John nodded

"But Mark thought you were perfect. He always said the best things came in small packages,"

"What was he like?" Erin said taking the photo back and placing it in her shirt pocket, close to her heart.

"Well he was very young as was your mother when they had you. He always seemed troubled. He smiled a lot but there were undertones of angst. I suppose that's natural for an artist though,"

"He was an artist?" Erin said looking shocked

"Oh yes," John said, "He had his work displayed in quite a few galleries. Do you draw Erin?"

She nodded and pulled her sketchpad out of her bag. John took it carefully and flicking through the pages, he shivered as he saw Mark Jones' talent seep through to the next generation. She had imitated his style perfectly to the point where it could have been Mark that drew it.

"Your father would have been proud," he assured her

"You found him didn't you?" she asked gently and John nodded

"I remember coming round to check on him. Your mother was out and he'd been left with you. He hadn't been himself for a few days and I was worried. When I got into your house, it was silent. I found him in the bathroom…" John stuttered over his words

"Was he dead when you found him?" she asked

"Yes," John said quietly "And then I went to find you. Erin, you were wrapped up in your cot. You were awake but silent, almost as if you knew what was going on and that it was a solemn moment,"

"Did the police come?" John nodded

"I tried to get custody of you. Mark had told me how abusive your mother was but the police didn't buy any of that and they thought it was best to stay with your mother and godmother,"

"How wrong they were," Erin sighed

"I can't imagine what she did to you," John said gently

"You don't want to;" Erin said darkly "It'd give you nightmares like it gives me,"

"Erin, I'm so glad you're safe. I always worried about you. I'd like to stay in touch with you if that's alright?"

Erin nodded and scribbled down her contact details for him "What do you do for a living?" she asked

"I'm in the army," he told her "I've just come back from a tour,"

Erin nodded and smiled as they lapsed into gentle conversation. She felt her broken heart finally begin to mend as she fitted in the missing piece of the puzzle. Her heart was nearly complete and she willed her father to find a place there. Yet her sanctuary was not complete as there was still a void between herself and the only other who was on her wavelength. Erin resolved to get Nate back, she needed her best friend by her side and she knew that he needed her as well.

**Author's note: It will get happier, I promise, it has to there are only a few more chapters left. **


	33. Love stuck in the mud

**Author's note 1: Just a little warning that there is a minor profanity used towards the end of the chapter.**

John Rochester looked down at the girl who was lying on the grass next to him and smiled. Erin was lying on her back with her eyes shut, her expression was so peaceful and a wave of tranquillity passed across her face.

"Stop staring at me," she said opening her eye a crack

"I was checking to see if you were asleep," John grinned

"I wouldn't waste a second of this day sleeping," she said, propping herself up on one elbow.

Leo had let John take Erin out for the day, despite the fact she was still grounded Leo had decided there had been enough improvement in her behaviour to let her have some freedom. The two of them had gone to the park and had spent a lazy afternoon getting to know each other.

"So have you decided how to get your boyfriend back?" John asked

"He's not my boyfriend," Erin scowled "And no I haven't," she said answering his question

"Is his mother still not letting you see him?" he asked and Erin made a noise of confirmation

"It's so unfair," she sighed

"Sometimes life is," John said staring up at the bright blue sky "But it doesn't always have to stay that way,"

"I'm not allowed anywhere near him," Erin sighed

"You don't have to be near him to tell him how you feel," John told her "Sometimes words actually do speak louder than actions,"

"How so?" she asked

"Think of Shakespeare's plays, his words have the power to make men cheer and weep. Think of 'Pride and Prejudice' and how Darcy's letter to Elizabeth completely changes her view of him…"

"I suppose," Erin said nodding

"The course of true love never did run smooth," John quoted as he pulled Erin to her feet "Now I'd better get you back home before Leo starts to worry," the girl's face dropped when she heard this "We've got plenty of time to get to know each other," he assured her.

"But the army wants you to go back soon," she said quietly, her face full of worry

"Did Leo tell you that?" John asked and she nodded "Well that's not for a while yet and we can still keep in touch," he told her gently and she managed a weak smile that was so reflective of her father

Erin looked up at the blue sky and saw some dark clouds beginning to from across the edges of the blue mass,

"There's meant to be a storm coming," John told her knowingly

"And?" she asked quizzically

"Turbulence is an environment you seem to flourish in," he told her with a grin "You'd better not keep that young man of yours waiting,"

…

Nate trudged into school feeling utterly low. His life had lost so vitality since his separation from Erin and he was beginning to realise how much she meant to him. He had begged and pleaded with his mother to let him see Erin but to no avail. Erin was his only friend; she was the only one in the lonely world who could understand him without clarification. He needed her and she needed him, to separate them was to begin to end the universe.

He was early for his art class but he didn't care, Nate didn't care about anything anymore because the only thing he ever truly cared about had been taken away from him. Erin had been taken away from him and he had been thrown back into the void, the void where his only companion was the loneliness that was eating away at his very soul.

"Mr Peters?" Nate's heart leapt when he heard Erin's voice calling to their teacher. The world seemed to slow for Nate as he watched Erin talk to their teacher. The sun was streaming through the classroom window and had caught Erin; her face glowed with the morning light, highlighting the natural tint of her hair. Her grey eyes were fixed on the teacher and her face was tense as she focused on what the teacher was saying.

"Nathaniel," a voice called and he jerked out of his trance to see the teacher frowning at him "Get yourself set up and continue with your work,"

"Yes sir," he mumbled sitting down at his table that was so cruelly separated from Erin.

He pulled out his sketchpad and half-heartedly started to work on his observational drawing. Art had become so dull without Erin to talk to, she always knew how to make him laugh or encourage him and sometimes even just sitting in silence was more than enough to satisfy Nate.

He watched her as she crossed the room balancing her water pot and paintbrushes. She brushed passed his table on the way to the sink but didn't look at him. Yet Nate's disappointment wad only temporary when he noticed the small scrap of paper that had been dropped onto his desk. Taking it under the desk, out of the sight of the teacher, he unfolded the scrap and began to read.

"_If all else perished, and he remained, I should still continue to be; and if all else remained, and he were annihilated, the universe would turn to a mighty stranger: I should not seem a part of it."_

Nate smiled as he read that quote, Erin had clearly remembered that 'Wuthering Heights' was one of his favourite books. The few lines of Emily Bronte written before him showed she had not forgotten about him. But it was what was written underneath that truly captured Nate's attention, written in Erin's loopy handwriting were words that he would remember forever:

_I never knew what this meant until I met you..._

When he finally looked up he saw Erin staring at him from across the classroom, her head was cocked to one side as she watched him closely. She pressed a small smile onto her lips as the rest of the class filed in. Nate tried to glimpse her face though the crowds of people waling through the door but when they had cleared her face was turned back to her work.

The sunlight had faded from the classroom but it had not taken Nate's hopes with it. They had communicated for the first time in months using words written over 150 years ago. Nate made a mental note to re-read 'Wuthering Heights' when he got home in homage to the Miss Bronte that had renewed his hope in no more than three lines, thirty eight words and 197 letters.

….

By the time school had finished, the warm weather had broken and storm clouds had started to gather. The weather forecasters had been predicting it for the last few days but Nate had not cared about anything, let alone a weather forecast. However, that had all changed since the fateful note from that morning. As he walked across the playing fields the grey clouds began to release their contents, rainwater poured down from the sky above and started to soak the parched ground. Nate began to hurry home but got further across the field, he saw something that made him stop despite the worsening weather.

Stood in the middle on the field was a petite figure dressed in a school blouse and skirt that were drenched through from the rain. Her dark hair was plastered to her face and the ends were dripping with water but her pale eyes were playful and she almost seemed to be enjoying the torrential downpour.

"Well come on then," Erin yelled with a grin stretched across her face

Nate sped towards the young girl and threw himself into a hug with her, the sudden motion caught the pair off balance and they collapsed to the ground in a particularly muddy and sodden part of the field.

"I bloody love you Erin Dalton," he grinned as the rain hammered down soaking the pair even more.

"I'm glad," she grinned, "I was waiting twenty minutes before you turned up,"

Nate let out a laugh as he flopped down on the grass beside Erin. It felt good to laugh, it felt good to be lying on the soaking grass and it felt good to be reunited with the one girl in the vast and wide universe that he could lie in the mud with and not care about the consequences.

**Author's note 2: Sorry for the delay on this, I'm not to great with writing happy stuff. I also want to apologise for degrading Emily Bronte by using her in my work but I just felt that was a brilliant quote to sum up Nate and Erin.**

**Author's note 3: Only two more chapters to go!**


	34. Harry and Nikki Version 2

Leo had very nearly killed Erin when she walked through the door plastered in mud and soaked through to her skin.

"Stop right there," he said as she attempted to step off the door mat and onto Leo's cream coloured carpet

"Why are you covered in mud Erin?" Janet said, entering the hallway after hearing Leo's raised voice

"What mud?" she asked innocently

Leo ran a finger across her face "This mud," he sighed "Do I even want to know what you've been doing?"

Erin paused for a moment "No."

Leo shook his head "Take your shoes off, go upstairs and shower. If you even get one tiny bit of mud on the carpet you will be grounded for eternity,"

"You can't do that," Erin called as she ran up the stairs "You've already grounded me for life!"

Leo sighed loudly as he picked up the remains of Erin's school shoes, which had now turned to sodden, muddy lumps "I have no idea what's gotten into that girl," he said as Janet followed him into the kitchen

"It's nice to see her so happy," Janet tried

"I think I preferred her when she was sulking," Leo said "At least then she was clean,"

The two of the looked up towards the ceiling as they heard the shower turn on full blast, they could just about hear Erin crooning old love songs above the hiss of the water.

…

Erin and Nate kept up their secret meeting for the rest of the school term, balancing revision with sneaking out of the house and to the park. With Leo out at work for most of the day and Erin on study leave this was much easier than planned although she was careful not to push her luck too far so she made sure she was always back in plenty of time.

However, the exams had soon passed and for Erin and Nate the whole summer stretched ahead of them. Nate's mother still hadn't lifted the ban on seeing Erin and the relationship between mother and son had reached an all time low. Arguments raged in the Austen household but Nate knew that all he had to do was step outside of his front door and Erin would be there to take him back into the vibrant world once more.

"Are you okay?" she asked him one day after he had escaped from a particularly nasty argument

"I wish we could get away from here," Nate said glumly

"We're going to university soon," Erin told him, taking one of his hands in hers

"Do you think we'll stay together?" he asked her and she nodded

"Forever and always," she smiled "Nate you're the only one who understands me. Sure, Leo, Nikki and Harry have some idea of what's going on in my head but you always seem to know without even asking,"

"I guess we're just on the same wavelength," Nate told her and she made a noise of agreement.

Erin fell silent again as Nate looked across at her; he saw a look of sadness flutter across her grey irises. He squeezed her hand gently to tell her he would listen to her problems if she would let him.

"John's gone back out to Afghanistan," she told him and Nate nodded, remembering what she had told him about her fathers friend.

"He'll be back soon," he assured her

"I know," Erin said firmly but her voice quivered slightly.

The two of them walked through the park in silence, simply enjoying one another's presence.

"Hey Erin," Nate said after a while "What are we exactly?"

"Humans…" she said slowly, frowning at Nate

"No," Nate shook his head "I mean _us_,"

"Oh," Erin said finally realising what he meant, "Well we've kissed a couple of times so I guess we're more than just friends. On the other hand, we're not formal enough to be girlfriend and boyfriend. So I guess we're…"

"…very close friends and possibly something more that is yet to be determined." Nate finished for her and she nodded with a smile.

"Exactly," she said squeezing his hand, "We're basically Harry and Nikki, version two,"

…

Leo drummed at his steering wheel impatiently; he had been stuck in the traffic jam for a good half hour and was eager to get home. Glancing across at his surroundings to try to take his mind off of the roaring traffic, he caught sight of the entrance to the local park. The wide, green, open spaces did nothing to soothe a man stuck in a claustrophobic metal shell but something else made his smile.

A young girl and a boy strolled hand in hand out of the park, she rested her head on his shoulder and the young boy mumbled something to her that made her laugh. The girl looked so happy it took his a second to realise it was Erin. Leo watched in amazement as Erin and Nate walked down the road, oblivious to everything and everyone. The two of them looked closer than they had ever been and Leo wondered how long they had been meeting secretly. The parent part of Leo wanted to jump out of the car and break the pair up, but the happy, serene look on Erin's face stopped him. He was reminded of himself and Teresa when they had first met, just like Erin and Nate, in sixth form at school, both their parents had been reluctant for them to date but it hadn't stopped the pair.

Leo leant back in his seat as he watched Erin and Nate walk out of sight, the two youngsters were happy and clearly very much in love even if they didn't truly realise the extent of it yet. He groaned as a sudden realisation hit; he was probably going to have another 'Harry and Nikki' on his hands.

…

"Are you coming over for Erin's birthday tomorrow?" Leo asked Harry a few days later

"Woulsnt miss it for the world," Harry smiled as he flicked through the case file he was working on "Have you told her you know about her and Nate?"

Leo shook his head "I'm not going to ruin their fun,"

"But his mother…"

"…needs to loosen up a bit," Leo finished "They're young and in love. Erin and Nate aren't hurting anyone and quite frankly they're good for each other."

"I can't honestly remember a time when I've seen Erin so full of life," Harry admitted and Leo nodded

"I heard her laugh yesterday," he smiled at the memory "A real natural laugh. She hasn't done that since all this business with Nora started,"

"Have the buried her?" Harry asked

"A few weeks ago," Leo told him "Erin didn't want to attend the service and to be honest I don't blame her,"

Harry nodded, deep in thought, "What time do you want us round tomorrow?" he asked

"Around five," Leo said, "I'm taking Erin in the morning to see her father's grave,"

**Author's note: Last chapter next!**


	35. Sanctuary

Leo and Erin walked through the graveyard in silence. It was a warm summer morning but Erin shivered despite herself, the graveyard was quiet and eerily calm. The leaves on the tress rustled in the gentle breeze creating shadows the flickered across the path in front of them.

"I'll e over here if you need me," Leo said as he nudged Erin towards her fathers grave.

He watched as the girl slowly moved over to the small tombstone. He'd found it in a state of disrepair a few days ago and had made an effort to tidy it up before Erin visited it.

"Hi dad," she mumbled as she crouched down and set the small bunch of roses she had picked out for him, on the grave "I'm sorry I've not come to see you before, I had no idea where you were,"

Leo looked on as she mumbled a few words to the gravestone, a small tear trickled down her face but she hastily brushed it away.

"Are you okay?" he said as they walked back to the car

"Yeah," she said gently "I'm okay now,"

"We'd better get back home, we've got to set up for your party, birthday girl," Leo smiled at her.

Erin rested her head back on the seat and stared out of the window deep in thought. As she took account of her life, she realised how much things had changed. Erin had moved from being surrounded by people but not having a real family to being surrounded by people who loved and cared about her. Although no one in her new family were biologically related to her, she felt more close to them than she had to her bloodline. Things weren't perfect in her life, there had been many changes, some for the better like meeting Nate, some for the worse, like meeting Nora and some she wasn't sure about, like Leo proposing to Janet.

But as Erin looked out of the window she knew no matter how scary things got, that she always had a safe place to go, whether that be in a book, wrapped up in her duvet or held closely in the arms of Nate. Erin realised that now because she had a sanctuary to go to when things got tough, she wasn't scared anymore.

She no longer feared a world that had once seemed so lonesome and frightening to her. She didn't doubt that the world was still full of nasty and horrible things but she had a small place in her heart to go when things got to much.

Erin had found love, friendship, family and had found the one safe place she could always go to no matter what.

Erin had found her sanctuary.

**Author's note: And there we have it. I got quite emotional writing that last chapter! I have some Erin one shots and a short multi0chapter fiction about a grown up Erin which is coming up if you want them. **

**I just want to say thank you to everyone who has reviewed, it means a lot to me and I know I was rubbish updating this so for you to stick with this, is really great and it's nice to know that people enjoy reading about Erin as much as I enjoy writing about her.**


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